A Pretense of Romance: Mature Version
by MaureenT
Summary: Daniel volunteers to pretend to be Sam's boyfriend in an attempt to make Jack jealous, but the plan backfires in the most unexpected of ways. S&D romance, J&S UST, J and ? romance. COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

**A Pretense of Romance**

**Author:** MaureenT  
**Categories:** Angst, Drama, Romance, Alternate Universe  
**Content Warning:** Adult Themes, Mild Profanity, Sexual Content  
**Spoilers:** Forever in a Day, Maternal Instinct, Divide and Conquer, Chain Reaction, 2010, The Light

**Author's Notes: **This story is most definitely AU. **It contains a Daniel/Sam romance.**

* * *

***** IMPORTANT NOTICE ***  
Due to this archive's crackdown on sexual content in stories, I have changed all mature-rated scenes that may have been considered by the moderators to have an MA rating. The love scenes in this story have been replaced with the milder ones from the version of the story that had been rated Teen but now also has a Mature rating. I am keeping this version up because of the reviews attached to it. The real mature-rated version can still be found on my Web site at www .stargate-horizons. com (remove spaces). I welcome you to go there and read it, then come back here and review.**

CHAPTER ONE

Samantha Carter walked down the hall, heading for her lab. An airman walking in the opposite direction greeted her.

"Good morning, Major Carter." He halted, a look of consternation on his face. "I'm sorry, ma'am. I'm still getting used to the fact that you're no longer in the Air Force."

Sam smiled. "That's okay, Lieutenant. I'm still getting used to it myself."

The man gave her a nod. "Have a good day, Doctor."

"You too."

Sam continued her journey, thinking about the encounter. It had been a month since the day she resigned her commission, since the day she refused to have anything more to do with General Bauer's plan to detonate a Naquadah-enhanced nuclear bomb on a distant planet as a test. After Hammond was reinstated as the commander of Stargate Command, he had tried to get her commission back, but too many people didn't like the fact that Sam had refused to carry out the orders of a superior officer, even if those orders had been ones that should never have been given. The best that he was able to do was to get her hired as a civilian scientist. She still had her lab, and her job at the SGC had remained pretty much the same – with one very big exception. She was no longer a member of SG-1. Though there would not have been any rules against her rejoining the team as a civilian, the people who wouldn't let her back into the Air Force also flatly stated that she was not to be placed on an SG team, worried that she'd refuse to carry out an order on a mission. Not surprisingly, Jack had been livid about the whole thing and had made more than one remark that could have gotten him court-martialed if Hammond hadn't stepped in.

It hadn't been easy for Sam to adjust to no longer being in the Air Force. True, there were some advantages to working there as a civilian, like, for instance, the bigger paycheck, but she'd loved being in the Air Force, being part of that institution. The worst part was no longer being on SG-1. She really missed going on missions, exploring worlds, discovering new things.

One thing that Sam often consoled herself with was what her resignation prevented. It had all started when Daniel, while waiting in the general's office for him to return, got curious and took a peak inside a file that he guessed was about the bomb test. What he read alarmed him, and he'd gone straight to Sam. The planet scheduled for the test had an abandoned Naquadah mine and supported planet and animal life. Though there were no signs of intelligent life within fifty miles of the gate, Sam had known that wasn't good enough since they had no idea how big the explosion would be.

Upon confronting General Bauer, the whole truth was revealed. The soil was laced with minute traces of Naquadah, and it was hoped that the explosion would cause a chain reaction. It was possible that the entire planet would be destroyed. What was worse was that, apparently, that's exact what Bauer and the people behind him were hoping for. If it did what they hoped, they were actually going to consider doing it again on other Goa'uld-controlled planets. The thought of how many billions of innocent humans might perish horrified Sam and Daniel.

But that wasn't all. In order for them to be able to gather data, the Stargate would have to be left open when the bomb was detonated, which meant that the radiation from the blast would most likely have fed back through the wormhole. Bauer said it was believed that the gate would be destroyed before there was any danger to the SGC, but Sam wasn't so sure of that. After all, they'd seen a Stargate survive a direct hit from a meteor.

After learning all this, Sam refused to complete the bomb. When Bauer threatened her with a court-martial, she tendered her resignation. Furious, the general turned to the only other scientists on base with the knowledge and expertise to finish the bomb, all of whom were civilians. When they discovered what Sam had done and why, they all refused to work on the thing, which resulted in them getting fired. There were no military scientists on base who could do it, so Bauer was forced to look outside the SGC. By the time he found one who could do the job, Jack and Maybourne had managed to get Hammond back in charge. From what she was told, Bauer was enraged at being kicked out of his new command. All the fired scientists were promptly rehired.

After Sam was brought back as a civilian, she started doing some calculations and computer models on what would have happened if the test had been conducted. She determined that, if the gate hadn't been destroyed and the wormhole hadn't immediately collapsed, the massive energy coming back through the wormhole would probably have made it impossible for them to disconnect from the planet. If the gate failed to shut off after the thirty-eight-minute limit, the radiation would have eventually entered Earth's atmosphere. Even if they'd used the self-destruct and buried the gate, it might not have saved them since it was likely that their gate would have survived the blast, meaning that the radiation would have continued pouring through the connection, possibly for months as the test planet, turned into a ball of superheated plasma, kept burning. Once the Stargate's iris failed, the radiation would have started heating and melting the soil and rock covering the gate. The melted remains would then have fallen through the open wormhole. Eventually, the radiation would have eaten a hole right through the mountain. Then nothing would have stopped all of Earth from being irradiated.

Given the choice of either keeping her job in the Air Force or being a part of such a catastrophic event, Sam would, of course, choose the former every time and had no regrets about her decision.

The astrophysicist was pulled from her thoughts by another greeting.

"Good morning, Carter," said Jack O'Neill.

"Good morning, sir."

Jack frowned. "Carter, how many times do I have to tell you to call me 'Jack'? I'm not your C.O. any longer."

"Sorry, sir . . . um, Jack. Old habit." Sam smiled slightly. "If I'm supposed to call you by your first name, shouldn't you do the same?"

Jack nodded once. "Point taken. You're right. Old habits die hard. So, Sam, what are you going to be bringing to our little pre-Labor Day picnic this weekend?"

"Green bean casserole. My mother's recipe."

"Mmm mmm. Can't wait." Jack looked at his watch. "Well, gotta hop to it. I'm late for another chewing out."

"About what?"

"About Lieutenant Philips. Hammond just can't understand why I found him totally unsuitable as your replacement."

Sam hid a smile. Greg Philips had been the third person put on SG-1 to take her place . . . and the third person to rather quickly lose that position. Secretly, it made her feel good that Jack kept finding the new fourth members of SG-1 lacking. It proved how much he'd valued her skills and contribution to the team. Now, if only he'd. . . .

Sam halted her train of thought before it could run away with her.

"Well, good luck, sir," she said. "I'm sure that you'll find someone soon who will work out on the team."

Jack didn't look convinced. "I'm not so sure of that. The problem is that you're just too damn good at what you do. Nobody's feet are big enough to fill your shoes . . . metaphorically speaking, that is."

Sam let her smile appear. "Thank you. That's nice of you to say."

Jack shrugged. "Just telling it like it is. The truth is that if Daniel ever got himself fired, I'd have the same problem." He held up his finger. "And don't you dare tell him I said that. I wouldn't want him to start putting on airs. He's already a pain in the ass."

Sam's smile got even bigger. "Mum's the word."

After saying goodbye to Jack, Sam covered the rest of the distance to her lab.

* * *

It was well after midnight, and Sam was still at it. Truth be told, her full attention had not been on her job today. Thoughts of Jack kept interfering with her concentration. Now that she was a civilian and no longer on SG-1, there would be no regulations against the two of them becoming a couple, yet, in all this time, Jack hadn't said one word about that, hadn't given one hint that he was even thinking about it. Yes, Sam could take the lead and be the one to broach the subject, but she was too scared to do so. Why hadn't he said anything?

"I see you're still at it, too."

The voice startled Sam. She turned to see Daniel in the doorway, a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Yes, unfortunately," she said. "So, what's got _you_ working so late?"

Daniel came up to her. "Translations, as usual."

"You need a bigger staff, Daniel. You should talk to the general about that."

The archeologist shrugged. "I don't mind. It's not like I have anyone waiting up for me at home."

The comment made Sam think of Jack again. Daniel noticed the emotion that flickered across her face.

"Sam, are you okay?" he asked in concern. "I've noticed that something seems to be bothering you lately."

"I'm fine," she immediately responded.

The archeologist stared at her. He knew that she was lying, but he didn't want to push if she didn't want to talk about what was bothering her. As it turned out, there was no need to push.

Seeing the way her friend was looking at her, Sam suddenly blurted out, "It's about the colonel."

Daniel frowned. "Jack? What about him?"

"It's just that, now that I'm no longer in the Air Force or on SG-1, I thought that. . . ."

"That what?" Daniel asked. Then, all at once, he knew. "Oh."

It was Sam's turn to stare. "Oh?"

"You were hoping that Jack would ask you on a date."

Sam's cheeks colored in embarrassment.

Daniel smiled the tiniest bit. "Did you think I didn't know about the thing between you two? I've known for a while now."

"How did you find out?"

"Things I've seen, the way you guys act sometimes, especially after that whole incident with the Zatarcs."

Sam sighed. "We were forced to admit aloud that we had feelings for each other we really shouldn't. You see, something happened between us on that planet when we were wearing those armbands. We weren't being completely honest about everything during the first Zatarc test."

"Which is why you failed it."

The astrophysicist nodded. "Teal'c and Janet told us that they wouldn't reveal to anyone what Jack and I said. Anise agreed that it was not necessary for her to include it in her report. Since then, Jack and I have tried to act normally, but I guess we didn't do a good enough job."

"I doubt that anyone else has noticed," Daniel told her. "So, I guess this confirms that you and he never did anything about your feelings."

"No, of course not. It would have been against regulations."

"But it wouldn't be now."

"No."

"Have you talked to Jack about it?"

Sam toyed with a screwdriver on her worktable. "I'm too nervous and embarrassed. I mean, what if he doesn't feel that way about me anymore?" She smiled faintly. "Janet suggested that I try to make him jealous."

Daniel's eyebrows rose. "Jealous?"

"Yeah. She thinks I should pretend to get a boyfriend and flaunt him in the colonel's face."

That made Daniel's eyebrows go up even higher. "And where is this boyfriend supposed to come from?"

"Well, that's the problem. I can't just pull some guy off the street and ask if he can pretend to be my boyfriend. Janet asked if I had any guy friends who'd be willing to do it, but the only guy friends I have in Colorado Springs all work at the base. There's no way that I'm going to ask one of the scientists I work with to do it. It would be way too awkward afterwards."

"Yes, I should imagine it would be."

The statement was followed by a long moment of silence. Feeling uncomfortable, Sam went over to a device sitting on one of the counters and fiddled with it. She was joined by Daniel around half a minute later.

"I could do it," he said after a moment.

Sam turned to him, staring blankly. "What?"

"I could pretend to be your boyfriend."

Sam just gaped at him, unable to believe that he'd suggest such a thing. She finally shook her head.

"Thank you for offering, Daniel, but, no, that wouldn't work."

Daniel frowned. "Why? Is it that unbelievable that I could be your boyfriend?"

Sam was surprised at the slight tone of hurt in his voice. Then she realized what he must be thinking.

"No! Of course not, Daniel. That isn't what I meant at all. The truth is that I know of several people who already think we're an item."

Daniel's eyes widened in surprise. "You do?"

"Uh huh. I guess they think that, because we're so close, we must be lovers."

"Oh. Then why did you say that it wouldn't work?"

"Because it would be horribly unfair to you, Daniel. Let's say that the plan actually worked. You and I would have to 'break up', and everyone would think that I dumped you for Jack. I couldn't do that to you."

"What if we made it clear that the break up was a mutual decision on our parts, that we simply decided it wouldn't work out between us? Once everyone saw that I was happy about you and Jack, I think everything would be all right."

The frown was on Sam's face this time. "I don't know. It's an awful lot to ask of you."

"Sam, if you'll recall, you didn't ask, I offered."

She looked at him, searching his face. "Daniel, are you sure about this? If you're not, then I wouldn't want to do it."

Daniel really thought about it, about what it would mean to pretend to be Sam's boyfriend. If he was completely honest with himself, he'd have to say that, no, he wasn't sure. But he cared about Sam, and he wanted her to be happy. If this would lead to her finding happiness, then he was willing to do it.

"Yes, I'm sure," he replied with a gentle smile.

Sam studied his features for a moment longer, then, much to his surprise, pulled him into a long, tight hug.

"Thank you," she whispered. "You are such a good friend."

Daniel hugged her back.

"So, how are we going to announce this fictitious relationship?" he asked after they'd separated.

"Good questions. I suppose we could make the announcement at the picnic this weekend. We could say that we've been dating for a while, but hadn't been ready to tell anyone until now. We'll have to let Janet in on it ahead of time, of course."

Daniel gave a nod. "Okay. I just hope I can remember how a guy is supposed to act while he's dating a girl. It's, um, been a long time, not since Sarah and I broke up."

Sam gave Daniel a look of sympathy, knowing that he was still hurting over what had happened to Sarah.

"I'm sure you'll do fine," she said with a fond smile. "Besides, I'm even rustier than you are. I haven't been on a date in . . . in way more years than I care to admit." Sam grimaced. "Boy, is that ever depressing."

"Well, if this whole thing works out, that will all change."

Sam smiled. "That's the plan."

* * *

Janet was pretty shocked when Sam told her everything the next day.

"Daniel actually volunteered?" she asked.

"Uh huh. It was all his idea."

Janet thought about it. "Well, at least you wouldn't have to worry about people not believing that it's the truth. As close as you and Daniel are, it wouldn't be that much of a leap for you to make your relationship a romantic one."

Sam nodded. "And it'll be a lot easier pretending with him than with anyone else, someone I'm not as close to."

Janet looked at her closely. "So, are you and Daniel prepared to be publicly . . . affectionate with each other?"

"The truth is that we haven't talked about that part yet. But I think we'll be okay. It's not like we're going to be making out in public. We don't have to go anywhere near that far."

"No, but you _are_ going to have to kiss."

Sam blushed a bit at the statement. Of course Janet was right. She and Daniel would have to kiss, and not just on the cheek. They'd just have to deal with it. It's not like it would be a horrible experience to kiss Daniel. He was a very handsome man, after all, and had more than his fair share of appeal to members of the opposite sex. More than one female on base would be quite happy to lock lips with him.

"We'll be fine," Sam assured the doctor.

* * *

That evening, Daniel and Sam got together at his place to "get their stories straight."

"Do I need to take notes?" the archeologist asked teasingly.

Sam smiled. "Oh, I think you'll remember."

"All right. So, first thing's first. When did we start dating exactly?"

Sam thought about it for a minute. "Two weeks ago Saturday was our first date."

"Check. How many dates since then?"

"Um . . . six."

Daniel looked at her. "Six? When would we have found the time?"

"Yeah, you're right. Make it four."

"Okay. Uh . . . how far have we gone in our relationship?"

"Um, not far, just some light making out. We've decided to take it slow."

Daniel smiled. "As opposed to my previous relationship?"

Sam laughed. "Yes, as opposed to that."

"That's good. I'm usually not the kind of guy to marry a woman the day I meet her. I'd generally like a few more days to get to know her better."

They got into more details about their fictitious relationship, where they'd gone on dates, other things they'd done together.

"So, have we got it all?" Daniel asked at the end of it.

"Yes, I think so."

"Oh, there is one more thing."

"What's that?"

"Why we started dating in the first place."

"Yes, you're right. That's bound to come up. I guess we could say that, after I became a civilian, we got to talking and realized that we felt something more than friendship. We decided to go on a date and see how it went. We had such a good time that we kept right on dating."

Daniel nodded. "Sounds good to me. Um . . . Sam, if, uh, we've been dating for that long, we're going to have to appear to be comfortable . . . touching each other."

"We already are comfortable touching each other."

Daniel looked at her. "You know what I mean."

Sam sighed. "Yes, I do, and you're right. If we don't put on a good act, Jack will spot it."

Daniel looked at her a moment longer, then slowly scooted closer to her on the couch. Feeling nervous for some reason, Sam closed the remaining distance. She felt Daniel's arm tentatively lay across her shoulders. The first thing Sam registered was that he smelled good. He had a clean, faintly spicy scent, something that made her think of some exotic desert land. She wondered what aftershave he used.

Daniel was surprised by how good it felt to have Sam so close to him. The skin of her arm where his hand lay was soft, her hair smelling like jasmine.

"Is this okay?" he asked very softly.

"Um, yes. Yes, it's fine," Sam replied. She didn't feel nervous at all now. In fact, it felt quite nice to be like this with him. Daniel was not a very tactile person. He rarely touched unless he was touched first. Though they'd hugged more than once over these years, every one of those times had been during a moment of strong emotion, whether that emotion was joy or sorrow. It was nice to be this close to him without it being the result of some major event.

Daniel's hand had started slowly rubbing up and down her arm, almost caressing it. He suddenly became aware of what he was doing and froze. He withdrew his arm.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I wasn't thinking. Sha're used to like it when I did that. It sort of became a habit."

"It's okay, Daniel," Sam assured him. "I didn't mind. Actually, it felt kind of nice. If we're going to be convincing, we'll have to touch each other in ways that are a bit intimate."

Daniel smiled, his head ducking. "Or we could just say that neither of us is into public displays of affection."

"Now, Daniel, you know that wouldn't work. You weren't shy about PDA with Sha're."

"Oops. You're right."

"So, PDA will have to be in." Sam backed up her words by taking Daniel's arm and placing it back over her shoulders. He relaxed, but did not resume the unconscious caress, which actually disappointed Sam.

They'd been like that for around a minute when Sam took Daniel's other hand, entwining her fingers with his. Surprised by the gesture, he looked at her. Her smile was a shade on the embarrassed side.

"I always used to like holding hands with my boyfriends," she explained. "I know it's not especially intimate, but it always felt good."

Daniel gave her a little smile. "Then I'll have to remember to hold your hand often when we're in public for as long as this goes on."

Sam looked at him. "Daniel, are you really going to be okay with this? It's only been a little over a year since Sha're died. People are bound to comment about her."

Daniel didn't reply for several seconds. "I think that, if this thing was real, Sha're would be happy for me. She'd have wanted to see me find love again. That's what I'll tell anyone who asks."

Sam searched his face. "Does that mean that you'll someday start looking for someone?" When he looked away and didn't reply, Sam figured that she'd stepped over the line. "I'm sorry, Daniel. I shouldn't have asked that."

Daniel sighed. "No, it's okay. I'm not . . . I'm not ready to start thinking about finding someone. It's still too soon." He paused for several seconds. "I don't know if I'll ever be ready."

Sam's grip on his hand tightened. The thought of Daniel being alone for the rest of his life filled her with sorrow. It would be so terribly wrong for someone as wonderful and compassionate as him to never find love again.

"You'll find someone, Daniel," she said. "I know you will. And whoever that someone is, they'll be very lucky to have you."

Surprised and deeply flattered by her words, Daniel looked at her. Her gentle blue eyes were looking back at him with tenderness and deep affection, and it made him feel really good inside. He gave her a genuine smile.

"Thank you."

They fell into a comfortable silence, neither one of them in any hurry to separate.

"Sam?" Daniel asked after a while.

"Hmm?"

"What are we going to do about the, um . . . kissing? If we have to continue this act for a few weeks, Jack will get suspicious if he never sees us kiss."

"Yeah, I know."

"So, I suppose we should. . . ." Daniel began blushing, looking embarrassed.

"Practice?"

"We don't have to, Sam. Maybe it would be best if we just did it on the spur-of-the-moment."

Sam shook her head. "I don't think that would be smart. If the kiss looks awkward or forced, Jack will know something's up. So . . ." she glanced at him, "we should practice."

Daniel cleared his throat, suddenly feeling very nervous. "Okay." He turned to her, and their eyes locked. He could see that she was nervous as well.

Daniel drew Sam in closer, his other arm going around her. Very slowly, his lips descended toward hers. Their mouths were a mere half-inch apart when Daniel hesitated, then he closed the remaining distance.

The kiss was soft, a light, brief touch. At the touch, Daniel did not feel nervousness, or discomfort, or any of the things he might have expected to. Instead, he felt a little thrill of pleasure race right through him. He drew back to see surprise in Sam's eyes.

"Was . . . was that okay?" Daniel asked uncertainly.

Sam's throat cleared. "Yes. Yes, that was . . . was fine. But we might want to do it for a, um, a little longer."

"Yes. Right." Swallowing to wet his suddenly dry throat, Daniel brought his lips to Sam's a second time. This kiss lasted several seconds, the pleasure kindling like a slow fire inside Daniel, centered low in his belly. When the desire to deepen the kiss, to penetrate Sam's closed lips with his tongue and taste what lay beyond, grew too strong to ignore, Daniel ended it.

The color in Sam's cheeks had heightened, and she looked a little dazed. She abruptly pulled away, giving him a slightly forced smile.

"That should be good," she said. She looked at her watch. "I should get going. I need to get to the base early tomorrow."

She got to her feet and headed to the door, Daniel following her. She glanced at him briefly and wished him a good night. Then she left, hurrying away down the hall.

Daniel went to the kitchen and got some water, taking a long drink. That had felt way too good. It shouldn't have felt like that. It should have felt like friends kissing, not like . . . a whole lot more. Daniel didn't want to think about why it felt that good. It was probably just because it had been a long time since he'd kissed a woman, not since the stupidity with Ke'ra. And Sam was a beautiful woman, after all, a lovely, intelligent, passionate woman whom a lot of guys would find very desirable. Not that _he_ found her desirable. Of course he didn't. She was his friend and former teammate. They'd known each other for years.

A lot of people would say that what happened had just been a natural physiological reaction to stimuli. That's all it was, just a natural reaction.

Deciding not to think about it anymore, Daniel went to find a book to read, already getting nervous about what the weekend would bring.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

By the time Saturday arrived, both Daniel and Sam were feeling jittery with nerves. They hadn't talked since the evening of their practice kissing. In fact, Daniel had made a point of avoiding Sam as much as possible. He hadn't been able to get their kisses out of his head, and he was really annoyed that he couldn't. He was tempted to tell Sam that maybe this whole thing was a mistake, but he'd promised her that he'd do this, and he didn't want to go back on his word. Hopefully, Jack would get really jealous very quickly, and they could put an end to the charade within just a few days.

Daniel and Sam arrived at Jack's place in separate cars, figuring that it would be for the best. The major got there first.

"Sam, you look like you're going to jump right out of your skin," Janet remarked in amusement a few minutes later.

The astrophysicist forcibly relaxed her posture. "Sorry. I guess I'm just really nervous about this."

Janet's gaze had gone to someone behind Sam. "Well, by the looks of it, Daniel is, too."

Sam turned and saw that Daniel had arrived and that he looked like he'd rather be fighting an army of Jaffa than be there.

Janet smiled. "I think you'd better go over there and talk to him before he decides to run away and hide. If he makes it through the Stargate, you'll never find him."

Nodding, Sam approached her friend. He was now in a conversation with one of his staff in the archeology department and didn't see her coming. She waited until the conversation was over and the other man had walked away before coming up to him.

"Hey, Daniel."

He started violently and jerked around to look at her.

"Um . . . hi, Sam."

Sam searched his face, seeing the tension there. "Daniel, if you don't want to do this, I understand," she said in a low voice.

"No. No, I'm okay. I'm just a little nervous."

Sam smiled slightly. "A little?"

That got a faint smile out of him. "Okay, a _lot_ nervous."

"Me too."

"When, uh, are we going to make the announcement?"

"We should wait until after most of the people are gone. Janet will be sure to hang around so that she can be here for it."

Daniel nodded. "Until then, do we just . . . act normally?"

"That would probably be best."

Throughout the party, Daniel and Sam did their best to act like nothing out of the ordinary was going on, but they couldn't stop glancing at each other, and the knots in their stomachs wouldn't quite go away. Neither of them ate much.

Daniel was in a lawn chair, toying with a piece of watermelon, when Jack came up.

"Are you sick or something?" the colonel asked.

"No. Why?"

"Well, you haven't been talking very much, and you hardly ate a thing."

"Oh." Daniel set the paper plate aside. "I guess I've just had my mind on other things."

"The same other things as Sam?"

Startled, Daniel shot him a look. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, just that she's also been uncharacteristically quiet this afternoon and seems to be off her feed as well. Any idea why?"

"Um, no." Daniel cursed silently at the way his voice had gone up an octave on the second word.

Jack stared at him narrowly. He was about to ask what was going on when Daniel was rescued by Cassie, who came up to him.

"Daniel, mom wants to talk to you."

The archeologist popped up out of the chair. "Thanks, Cass." He strode quickly over to the doctor, who was smiling slightly, standing apart from the crowd.

"You looked like you needed rescuing," she said.

"Thanks. I guess I'm not doing a very good job of acting like nothing's going on."

Janet searched his face closely. "Daniel, may I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why did you volunteer to do this?"

"To help Sam," Daniel instantly replied. "She's my friend."

"Yes, but this is sort of above and beyond the normal duties of friendship, Daniel."

"Janet, I'd give my _life_ for Sam. So, how could this be so far above and beyond what a friend would do for another?"

The doctor nodded. "You're right, of course. Still, I should imagine that this isn't going to be easy on you. After it's all over and done with, you're going to have to play the part of the ex-boyfriend from then on. A lot of people will talk."

Daniel almost laughed. "You're talking to the guy who made himself look like a nutcase to the entire archeological community. Believe me when I say that I'm used to people talking about me. This will be nothing compared to that."

"No, I should imagine that it wouldn't be." Janet smiled. "But I still think it's sweet that you're doing it."

The party finally wound down, the guests gradually leaving until only SG-1, Sam, Janet and Cassie remained. They finished cleaning things up, then all settled in the living room.

Knowing that the time was drawing near, Daniel and Sam deliberately sat together on the couch. The butterflies in their stomachs had procreated, and the caterpillars were presently squirming around frantically.

At last, they shared a look, silently agreeing that the time had come.

"Um . . . guys?" Daniel called to everyone. "Sam and I, uh, have something to tell you." All eyes turned to him. "You see, we're, uh . . ." he cleared his throat, "dating."

Utter silence was the initial reaction. It shouldn't have been any great surprise that it was the fifteen-year-old Cassie who broke it.

"Whoa. You mean that you guys are dating each other?"

Daniel and Sam replied together. "Yes."

Cassie let out a squeal and flung herself at them, hugging them both.

"That is just so totally cool! I _knew_ you guys were more than just friends. Mom said you weren't, but I just _knew_ it."

Daniel and Sam both looked at Jack. His mouth was hanging open, shock written all over his face. Then, all at once, his expression changed, hardening.

"How long has this been going on?" he asked in a tone of voice that was anything but pleased.

"Two weeks," Sam replied, her stomach tightening. Jack's anger didn't necessarily mean that he was jealous.

"And we're just hearing about it now?"

"We weren't ready to tell anyone," Daniel said, frowning. He wasn't happy with Jack's reaction. He didn't know what kind of reaction he'd been expecting, but the hostility was causing his own anger to rise.

Feeling the tension in the air, Janet decided to step in. "Well, I have to say that I'm pretty surprised. You two did a good job of hiding it." She smiled. "But I think it's wonderful. You make a good couple."

"Thanks, Janet," Sam said.

"I am pleased that you have taken this step," Teal'c stated. "You are well suited to each other."

"Thanks, Teal'c," said Daniel. He gathered the courage to take Sam's hand. She squeezed it rather tightly. Glancing at Jack, the archeologist saw that he was staring at their linked hands.

"Well, what an . . . interesting surprise to end the day," Jack remarked with biting sarcasm. He got to his feet. "I feel like another beer. Anyone want one?" Not waiting for a reply, he went into the kitchen.

Seeing the distress on Sam's face, Daniel decided that he needed to have a talk with Jack. It was one thing for the man to be jealous, which was what this whole thing was supposed to accomplish, but it was another thing entirely for him to act like a complete jackass.

Daniel met Sam's eyes. "I'll be right back," he murmured, giving her an encouraging smile.

Jack was rather viciously removing the cap from a beer bottle when Daniel entered the kitchen.

"Let's step outside, Jack," he said in a voice cold enough to drop the temperature in the room a good two degrees.

The colonel glared at him hotly. "Or what, Daniel?"

"Or you can be an ass right here in the kitchen for everyone to hear."

Jack slammed the beer down on the counter, spilling some of its contents. "Fine." He strode out the back door, followed by Daniel.

"You know, you could at least pretend to be happy for us," Daniel said, his arms crossed.

Jack rounded on him. "And why should I do that? You've done some pretty stupid things in your life, Daniel, but this is one of the stupidest. What possessed you to start dating a woman who used to be your teammate?"

"_Used_ to be, Jack. Sam and I are both civilians now and no longer on the same team. There is not a single rule or regulation against us dating."

"That doesn't make it right."

Daniel felt anger kindle deep inside. Yes, his relationship with Sam might not be real, and, yes, it might have all been conceived to make the man standing before him jealous, but what right did Jack have to say that a relationship between Daniel and Sam would be so wrong?

The words that came out of Daniel's mouth next were born of his anger and most definitely not thought out. "Look, Jack. I don't know what your problem is, but you need to understand one thing. Sam and I are a couple now, regardless of what you think about that, so you had better get used to it. Because if you can't, you'll be filling yet another space on your team."

With those words, Daniel spun on his heels and went back into the house. When he got to the living room, he saw that Janet and Cassie were gone. The doctor had probably decided that it would be best for her to get the teenager out of there.

"I'm going, Sam," Daniel said in a clipped tone. "You can stay, if you want, but I wouldn't recommend it."

"What did he say, Daniel?" she asked worriedly as she got to her feet.

"I'll tell you later." Daniel turned to the other person in the room. "Teal'c, do you need a ride back to base?"

"I will receive transportation from O'Neill, Daniel Jackson."

Nodding, Daniel helped Sam on with her sweater, then walked with her out to her car.

"Daniel, tell me what happened," she demanded.

"Jack was acting like an ass, and I got mad."

"Oh no. What did you say?"

The impact of his hastily spoken declaration to Jack – not to mention its foolishness – was really becoming clear to Daniel now. "I told him that he'd better get used to us being a couple or. . . ."

"Or what?"

"Or I'd, uh . . . quit the team."

Sam gasped. "Daniel, what possessed you to say that?"

Daniel thrust his hands into his pockets, staring at the ground. "Like I said, I got mad at something Jack said."

"Daniel, if Jack is really mad enough, he might take you up on your threat. I can't let you lose your position on SG-1 because of this. We need to go back in there and tell him the truth."

"No, Sam. We did this for a reason, and I'm not willing to give up yet. Let's just wait and see what happens."

Sam hesitated. This was not how she'd imagined tonight going. Yes, she'd hoped for a negative reaction from Jack, but not _this_ negative. And, now, Daniel's place on SG-1 was in danger. She should have known this was a bad idea. Trying to make someone jealous could lead to all kinds of dreadful things.

Daniel touched her arm. "It'll be all right, Sam. Jack's just pissed. He'll cool down."

"I hope you're right."

He gave her arm a gentle rub. "Go home and get some sleep. Would you like to do something together tomorrow? We could go catch a matinee or something, get our minds off this."

Sam gave him a weak smile. "That would be nice. We could go to lunch first."

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow, then."

On impulse, Sam pulled Daniel into a hug. He returned it, his hand stroking her hair. The desire to kiss her flitted through his mind, but he quickly exorcized it. There was no audience right now, no one that they had to pretend for.

After escorting Sam the final few feet to her car and waiting for her to drive away, Daniel went to his own car and left, unaware that he'd been wrong about the lack of an audience.

Jack remained at the window until Daniel's car disappeared from view, trying to curb his anger at seeing the couple embrace so tenderly. Turning around, he came face to face with Teal'c, who was frowning at him quite severely.

"You are not pleased by the news that Daniel Jackson and Samantha Carter are now lovers," the Jaffa observed.

The word 'lovers' made the beer in Jack's stomach sour. He went into the kitchen to straighten up, Teal'c accompanying him.

"I think they're making a big mistake," he said as he dumped out the beer he no longer had a stomach for.

"Why do you believe that a sexual relationship between them is a mistake?"

"Will you stop saying that?" Jack yelled. "They've been dating for two weeks. We don't know if they've . . . they've done _it_ yet."

"If by 'it' you mean had intercourse, then you are correct, but is it not common for members of your society who are dating to be sexually active with one another?"

"Jeez, Teal'c. Do you have to be so uninhibited with your comments?"

"It is not the custom of the Jaffa to be less than frank about sex, O'Neill. I have on more than one occasion heard you speaking about the act. Why is it different now?"

"Because it's Sam and Daniel we're talking about! I don't want to talk about them having sex. I don't want to _think_ about them having sex."

"Very well. You have not answered my question about why you believe a relationship between them is a mistake."

"I just do, okay? They're practically brother and sister, for cryin' out loud!"

"I have not observed Daniel Jackson and Samantha Carter acting like siblings, O'Neill, nor are they related by blood. They share a deep bond. Long have I believe that, if they were to go beyond friendship, they would have a relationship that would be strong and enduring."

Shocked, Jack stared at the Jaffa. "You've been rooting for them to get together?"

"I have not, O'Neill. I merely believed that, if such an event took place, it would bring joy to both of them."

Still stunned, Jack leaned back against the counter, eyes on the floor. Teal'c studied him.

"I believe that the heart of your hostility is your own feelings for Samantha Carter," he said.

Jack shook his head emphatically. "No, you're wrong. That isn't it at all."

"Are you certain, O'Neill? Though the word 'love' was not spoken by you during the Zartarc test, there is no doubt that is the emotion you were speaking about. It is also the emotion Samantha Carter was referring to with her words. Perhaps it is that you feel betrayed by her because it would appear that she no longer shares your feelings, and you are angered at Daniel Jackson because he now has her love."

Jack angrily pushed away from the counter. "Since when did you become a shrink? Stop trying to psychoanalyze me."

"Then you must psychoanalyze yourself, O'Neill. Your actions and words tonight were disrespectful of Daniel Jackson and Samantha Carter and were not the actions of a friend. An honorable man would accept what has transpired between them, despite his own desires."

Feeling like he'd just been scolded like a petulant child, Jack strode out into the living room and snatched his keys off the table beside the front door.

"I'll take you back to base," he said shortly.

A while later, on the return trip from the base, Jack had finally cooled down enough to think about Teal'c's words. Though he hated like hell to admit it, the man was at least partly right. It hadn't even been six months ago that Sam was just about declaring her love for him, and, now, she was dating Daniel. Sure, regulations had forbidden them at that time to do anything about their feelings, but she sure did get over them quickly. They must not have been very deep to begin with. And the real rub was that, now, it _wouldn't_ be against regulations for him and Sam to be together, yet she'd picked Daniel instead of him.

_'Well, Jack. You could have said something to her at any time during this month, but you didn't, did you,'_ a little voice inside his head said. Jack told it to shut up, but it kept nagging at him. Jack _could_ have said something. He could have gone to Sam and openly asked her out on a date, but, instead, he remained silent, acting like nothing had changed with their situation. Why? Jack knew the answer, but, right now, he was feeling too betrayed to let that knowledge cool his anger.

But, regardless of how he felt, the fact remained that Daniel and Sam were a couple now, and if he wasn't willing to accept that, he'd lose Daniel from the team and very likely lose the friendship of both of them. Were his hurt feelings worth that?

* * *

Daniel arrived at Sam's just before noon the next day. They had a nice lunch at a café, neither one of them saying anything about what had happened at Jack's. Afterwards, they went to the movies, choosing a film that they knew they'd both enjoy.

It was not quite a third of the way through the movie when Daniel tentatively took Sam's hand in his. Surprised at first, she smiled at him, letting him know with that smile that she had no objections to the contact. Their hands remained joined throughout the rest of the movie, an experience that both of them quite enjoyed.

As they walked to their car, Sam slipped her hand back into Daniel. She leaned toward him a bit.

"I figured that we should keep up with the act even when Jack's not with us," she said. "You never know when someone else from the base might be around."

Daniel smiled. "You're absolutely right." He promptly put his arm around Sam's waist.

As they reached the car, Daniel turned Sam around and pulled her gently into his arms. Surprised by the boldness of his move, Sam, nevertheless, went into the embrace quite willingly.

"So, what shall we do next?" Daniel asked.

Sam looked at him questioningly. "Next?"

"Uh huh. It's only three, and it's a nice day. We could go to the park or maybe just for a walk."

Sam smiled. "Daniel, you don't have to keep me occupied all day today. I'm fine."

"I'm just thinking that, if we really were a couple, we'd probably spend the whole day together. If, by chance, Jack goes to see one of us at home, it'll make him more jealous if he finds that we're both gone. He'll naturally assume that we're together."

"Hmm. You do have a good point."

"I have them on occasion."

"But don't you have things to get done today?"

"Nothing that can't wait. Besides, it's been a long time since you and I did something together outside of work."

Sam nodded. "You're right. It has." She smiled again. "Okay. Let's go to the park. I haven't been there in ages."

"The park it is."

For the rest of the afternoon, Daniel and Sam did a very good job of pretending to be a couple. When they weren't holding hands, they had an arm around each other. Anyone watching them would be convinced that they were romantically involved.

Daniel was enjoying the day with Sam very much, far more than he should. Touching her, having her so close to him felt good. It felt . . . right, which was more than a little surprising. Shouldn't it feel at least a little awkward? Up until now, they hadn't been the kind of friends that touched a lot. They hadn't been physically demonstrative. The sudden increase in physical contact should take a bit of getting used to, yet it wasn't, just the opposite, in fact. Daniel chose not to analyze why it would feel that way.

They'd just reached the car when Daniel spied a familiar face. He pulled Sam close.

"Sam, don't look, but Sergeant Harriman is here," he said in a low voice.

"He is?"

"Yeah, a few yards away. He's looking right at us."

Sam blushed slightly. "So, what do we do?"

"Well, that all depends on what you want the base to know. On one hand, if the entire base is talking about us, it will make Jack even more jealous. On the other hand, it'll mean that we're going to start getting peppered with questions right away."

Sam weighed the two things in her mind. "Well, since we're doing this to make Jack jealous, I say we really give him something to be jealous about."

A slightly mischievous smile curved Daniel's lips. "Okay."

In the next second, Daniel was kissing her. The kiss was long, slow and gentle. Though not passionate, it had Sam's temperature climbing and her arms winding themselves around his neck to bring him closer.

Daniel was fighting to maintain control, fighting not to press her up against the car and take full possession of her mouth. When he felt her lips part slightly beneath his, he had no choice but to either end the kiss or take it a hell of a lot farther. He reluctantly chose the former.

Daniel's breathing was a bit erratic as he pulled back. Sam's eyes blinked open, and she stared at him, her pupils slightly dilated.

"That, uhhhh . . . that will definitely have tongues wagging on base," Sam said, feeling a little breathless. Okay, Daniel could definitely kiss.

Daniel glanced at Harriman out of the corner of his eye. "Yeah, the sergeant looks a little like he just got hit by a shock grenade."

Sam giggled. "He'll be telling _everyone_. You'd never guess it, but Sergeant Harriman is one of the biggest gossips there."

Daniel smiled. "No. Really?"

"Oh, yes."

"Then I guess we're lucky he's the one we got to put on our show for."

Sam cleared her throat. "Very lucky." She wasn't the least bit unhappy about their choice to put on that performance. Damn. This wasn't supposed to feel so good. Things like this were just supposed to be a necessary part of the act. So, why did she not want to leave the circle of Daniel's arms? Why did she want to _really_ give Walter Harriman something to talk about – like seeing her and Daniel French kissing up a storm in a public parking lot?

Daniel's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"He's getting in his car now."

"Oh."

They released each other and put a few inches between them.

"I, um, should take care of a few errands," Sam said, feeling the need to be away from Daniel.

"Okay."

Daniel drove Sam home. He pulled up out front, not turning off the engine.

"Are you working tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yes, though, technically, I could take the day off. Are you?"

Daniel nodded. "I'll see you there, then."

"All right. Thank you for the lovely day, Daniel. I really enjoyed it."

"Me too." He looked at her closely. "Sam, if I ever . . . went over the line, did something that was too much, you'd tell me, wouldn't you?"

Sam smiled in assurance. "Yes, I'd tell you. Don't worry, Daniel. I won't deck you if you get a bit too touchy-feely."

Daniel smiled as well. "That's good. It would sort of ruin the whole plan if I came into work one day with a black eye and you nursing a sore hand."

Sam's smile broadened. "Well, we could just say that we both like it rough."

Daniel's eyes grew enormous, a flush spreading across his face.

Sam was instantly mortified. "I . . ." she laughed nervously, "I can't believe I just said that. I'm . . . going to go now." She opened the door and quickly got out. "See you tomorrow."

Daniel pulled away from the curb, trying very hard not to pay attention to the erotic images that had flashed through his mind after Sam's words – images that would never become reality. 


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

As Daniel and Sam had suspected, it didn't take long for word of the incident at the park to make it around the base. They got lots of stares and were no doubt the subject of plenty of conversations.

Two people in particular listened with greater than normal interest to the gossip, one of them being Jack, who wasn't the least bit amused. Some versions of the tale just about had Daniel and Sam having sex right on the parking lot asphalt, whereas others were a lot closer to a PG rating. But, regardless of which version you believed, Daniel and Sam had been sharing an intimate moment right out in public.

Jack was really trying not to let it bother him, but it was, dammit. He didn't want to think about Sam in Daniel's arms, his lips on hers, the two of them making love. Jack had decided yesterday to be a man about the whole thing and try to be happy for them. This new development wasn't making it easy, though.

The other person who paid close attention to the gossip was General George Hammond. He was mildly surprised by the news that Daniel and Sam were in a romantic relationship, but not overly so. He'd already known that they were very close and cared a great deal about each other. This was just a natural progression of those feelings.

Actually, this development was somewhat of a relief to him. Hammond was a commander who liked to keep up on the rumors going around his base, and among those rumors had been the ones hinting that there was something between Colonel O'Neill and Samantha Carter. Part of the reason for those rumors was the fact that the two alternate realities they'd encountered had Jack and Sam in a relationship. Many had assumed that, if it was true in those realities, perhaps it was true in this one as well. Hammond had never once believed that the two of them were carrying on a secret love affair, but that didn't mean that certain emotions didn't exist.

Of course, now that Sam was no longer in the military or on SG-1, it would not technically be against the regs for her and Jack to date, but such a relationship could still cause problems. One between Sam and Daniel, on the other hand, shouldn't be an issue at all. The fact was that the SGC already had one married couple on the civilian staff, and two other civilian scientists had recently gotten engaged. It hadn't been a problem with them, so it shouldn't be with Daniel and Sam.

Hammond had considered bringing the two young people into his office and talking with them about this, but he decided against it. There was no sense in making them uncomfortable, not as long as their relationship didn't affect the performance of their duties.

* * *

Daniel and Sam had lunch together and were alternately amused and made uncomfortable by all the stares they got. They were about halfway through the meal when Janet joined them.

"My, you two are certainly the talk of the town," she said. "I've heard all about your make-out session in the park."

Sam choked on her food. "Make-out session?" she nearly shrieked when she could talk again. "We kissed! That's all!"

Janet smiled. "I know, but it is the nature of gossip to often get blown all out of proportion. Some versions of the event are pretty, er, steamy."

Daniel groaned, lowering his head into his hands. "Oh, wonderful."

"Don't worry. They haven't escalated to public sex . . . yet."

Sam was blushing all the way to her neck. "That makes us feel soooo much better, Janet."

The doctor leaned in closer. "So, what's going on? Why the kiss?" she asked in barely above a whisper.

"Sergeant Harriman was there and watching us," Sam replied. "We decided to kiss and give him something to talk about. We figured that hearing the talk would make Jack really jealous."

"Ah. Well, I suspect that you succeeded. The colonel had to come in for a tetanus booster shot this morning, and he looked like he was ready to rip someone's head off."

Sam smiled hopefully. "He did?"

"Oh, yeah."

Daniel tried to ignore the feeling in his chest that Sam's smile created. It wasn't supposed to hurt; it was supposed to make him happy. This is what they both wanted , wasn't it? It was the whole point of this thing, make Jack jealous and drive him into Sam's arms.

"So, what happened after Cassie and I left Saturday night?" Janet asked.

"He and I had a little . . . discussion," Daniel replied. "I basically told him to stop acting like an ass."

"Well, just don't come to blows, okay? I've got enough business in my infirmary."

"Don't worry, Janet. Getting beaten to a pulp by Jack is not on my list of things to do."

Sam and Daniel finished their lunch, then went to his office to talk about what they'd learned regarding Jack. They froze upon seeing who was sitting in a chair beside Daniel's desk. For a fleeting moment, the archeologist wondered if he'd be making a trip to the infirmary after all.

Jack got to his feet and looked at them squarely. "I owe both of you an apology. You were right, Daniel. My behavior was unacceptable. It was rude and completely uncalled for."

The two scientists stood unmoving, taken totally by surprise. They hadn't expected this.

Jack walked past them, heading for the door. "Well, I just wanted to say that. I'll leave you two alone."

"Jack," Daniel called out. The man turned to face him. "Thanks."

The colonel nodded once and left the room.

* * *

Knowing that Jack's anger had cooled was a big load off the minds of both Daniel and Sam. Though Sam wanted the colonel to be jealous, she didn't want his fury. Her plan was that, after a few weeks, she and Daniel would 'break up', then she'd go to Jack and tell him. Her hope was that it would lead to him saying something about his own feelings for her.

And what if there were no such feelings anymore? Sam chose not to think about that.

Over the next several days, Daniel and Sam continued playing their parts. They ate every lunch together. When they could, they tried to arrange it so that Jack was there at the same time. Whenever he was, they sat even closer together, touched more often. They spent more time together in either Daniel's office or Sam's lab, collaborating on projects like they often did during those first couple of years in the program, all of it in the effort to increase Jack's level of jealousy.

The problem was that there was something else that was increasing. With every passing day, Daniel's pleasure at spending time with Sam grew stronger, the effect of every touch becoming more powerful. He ached to kiss her again, to do more than kiss her. He began to dream about her, every dream progressively more passionate until he found himself waking up crying out her name in ecstasy.

Deep inside Daniel's heart, he knew what was happening, but he couldn't admit it, not even to himself. This couldn't happen. It couldn't. This was Sam, his friend and former teammate, a woman who could never be his.

The hoax had been going on for two weeks when Janet decided that it was time to up the 'pressure'. She invited Daniel and Sam to dinner at her place, telling the archeologist to drop a casual invitation to Jack to join them. The bate was the homemade Irish stew that Janet was fixing. Jack had once mentioned that his grandmother used to make a fantastic Irish stew, a recipe straight from the "old country". Janet had searched the Internet for an authentic stew to tickle Jack's taste buds. Upon hearing what was on the menu, Jack accepted the invitation and passed one on to Teal'c.

Jack's taste buds were most definitely tickled that evening. He praised Janet for her cooking, giving her the high compliment of saying that his grandmother would have given the stew her approval.

After dinner was when the 'show' really began. Daniel and Sam sat close together, Sam's legs curled up on the sofa, Daniel's right arm around her shoulders, his left hand on her knee. Their eyes met often, smiles coming frequently. They kissed lightly more than once. All in all, they looked very happy and content. The problem was that it didn't appear to be doing what it was supposed to, namely, to make Jack seethe with jealousy. Oh, he definitely noticed. He spent a lot of time looking at them. But there was no glitter of jealousy in his eyes, no frown on his face. Instead, he often appeared thoughtful, sometimes even introspective.

Dissatisfied with his reaction, Janet decided it was time to pull out all the stops. She managed to sneak out onto the back porch with the two scientists.

"Okay, I say that we try something more radical," the doctor said.

"Define radical," Daniel responded nervously.

"Well, all the kisses the colonel has witnessed have been rather chaste. It's time to turn up the heat."

Daniel's mouth instantly went dry. No, no, no. Bad idea, bad, _bad_ idea. He'd been able to stay in control while kissing Sam only because those kisses had not been the passionate sort. The kiss in the parking lot had been the closest to containing any heat. If he had to kiss Sam the way Janet was suggesting. . . .

"Uhhh . . . I don't think that would be a good idea," he said, trying not to sound as nervous as he was.

"I think Daniel's right," said Sam.

"Why not?" Janet asked. She noticed that Daniel had sort of a deer-in-the-headlights look and wondered about it.

"Uh, because . . . because Daniel and I aren't the type to kiss like that in public," Sam replied. Hmm. She had a wee bit of that deer-in-the-headlights look, too.

"Well, we're not exactly in public. This is just a gathering of friends." Janet looked at Daniel. "Besides, Major Ferretti wasn't shy about describing the kiss Sha're laid on you on Abydos."

That made Daniel blush. "Yes, well, _my_ intention had been just a peck on the lips, Janet. It was Sha're who turned it into a lot more."

Janet frowned. "Okay, how about if you do it during a private moment that the colonel just happens to witness? It's a nice evening. You could stay out here on the porch to 'get some air'. I send the colonel out to call you in for dessert, and he sees the kiss."

Daniel was frantically trying to come up with another reason why this would be a bad idea, one that didn't involve him admitting that, if he kissed Sam like that, there'd be no hope of staying in control.

"I, um . . . I-I guess we could try it," Sam said, stammering slightly. Her statement sent a silent groan through Daniel. He wasn't going to get out of this. What the hell was he going to do?

Janet smiled. "Good." She glanced at her watch. "I'll send the colonel out to get you in five minutes."

Daniel and Sam watched the woman leave, checking the time on their own watches.

Daniel was so tense and nervous that he felt sick to his stomach. He kept trying to convince himself that he could do this, but it wasn't working.

"Daniel, are you okay?" asked Sam, startling him out of his panicked thoughts.

"Uhhh, yeah, I'm just. . . ."

"Nervous? Yes, me too. But it'll be fine, like two actors kissing before the camera, right?"

Daniel turned away, eyes closing briefly at the twinge of pain in his heart. "Right. Two actors." This is what he needed to remember. This kiss might mean a lot to him, but it would be meaningless to Sam. It would be taking place for the sole purpose of making the man she loved jealous.

Yep, that sure did kill any passionate thoughts. The kiss shouldn't be a problem at all now.

Sam looked at her watch to see how much time had passed. They still had a little while, so she joined Daniel at the railing.

"I'm beginning to wonder if this is all just a waste of time."

Daniel looked at her. "Why do you say that?"

Sam rubbed a fingertip across the railing. "Because Jack doesn't seem to be all that jealous. Yes, I know he was mad to begin with, but, now, it's like he's fine with us being a couple. Maybe he simply doesn't love me anymore."

"Sam, how could he not love you?" Daniel asked. "He'd be crazy not to feel that way about you."

Surprised at the passion in his reply, Sam looked at him. "Thank you. That's a really nice thing to say."

Daniel turned back to stare out into the night. "Maybe he's just trying to do the right thing, be a good friend and accept our relationship."

"You think so?" Sam asked in a tone of hope, a tone that made Daniel hurt even more. He gave a soft sigh, only his ears hearing the sadness in it.

"Yeah. I'm sure that's it."

Sam glanced at her watch again. "It's almost time. We should, uh, get ready."

With a sense of resignation, Daniel took Sam into his arms. They listened closely for the sound of footsteps. Several seconds later, they heard Jack's approach. Bracing himself, Daniel lowered his mouth onto Sam's. Her lips immediately parted beneath his . . . and he was lost. The taste of her overwhelmed him, the slide of her tongue on his alighting him like a match to a can of gasoline. He pulled her hard against him, all but devouring her mouth. There was no porch, no Jack, no hoax to make the man jealous. There was only Sam, the taste of her, the smell of her, the feeling of her body so tight against his, her hands clutching at him.

Daniel had lost all sense of the passage of time by the time he ended the kiss and pulled back to look at Sam. She didn't just look dazed this time, she looked downright shell-shocked, her breath coming in short, heavy gasps.

As if she'd suddenly recalled why they were there, she turned toward the door and was surprised to see no one there.

"Where'd he go?" she asked, pulling out of Daniel's arms. To Daniel, it felt like she was also pulling out his heart.

They heard footsteps again, this time feminine ones. Janet opened the door and stared at them.

"Well?" she asked.

Sam frowned. "Well what?"

"You kissed, didn't you?"

The two scientists glanced at each other.

"Yes," Sam replied. "What happened?"

"Don't you know?"

This time, Daniel frowned. "Um . . . no."

Janet looked at them in an odd way. "I sent the colonel to go get you. He came back a few seconds later and said that you weren't quite ready to come in."

"He did?" said Sam, shocked.

Janet's expression turned thoughtful. "Yes. I guess you were both too busy to notice him arrive and then leave."

Identical blushes suffused Daniel's and Sam's cheeks. They hurried into the kitchen and to the living room. Jack was watching them with an unreadable expression.

Daniel and Sam were both eager to escape and did so after the dessert was eaten, thanking their hostess for the delicious dinner. As Daniel drove Sam home, they said nothing, too occupied with their thoughts.

"See you tomorrow," Sam said after Daniel pulled up to the curb. He watched her until she'd made it into the house, then he headed for home. Once he was there, he lowered himself onto the couch and sat staring at nothing.

Slowly, the pain in his chest grew, pain caused by the knowledge he couldn't hide from any longer, the knowledge that he'd fallen utterly and hopelessly in love with Sam.

* * *

Something was wrong with Daniel. It had been two days since the dinner at Janet's, and he hadn't come to Sam's lab even once in that time. Whenever she went to see him, he claimed to be extremely busy and only gave her cursory glances. He hadn't eaten in the cafeteria at all.

Sam missed his company, missed _him_. She'd come to love the hours they spent together, both at meals and working jointly on projects. She also missed the physical contact. The one time that she touched him, he moved away, getting up to go get a book. Worst of all, he didn't smile, not even once. Ever since they began this charade, he'd smiled often, and it had been wonderful to see. Now, there seemed to be no joy in him at all.

Sam asked Daniel what was wrong, but he claimed that he was fine, that he was just tired because of all the extra hours he was putting in. Sam knew that he had, indeed, been putting in a lot of hours. She'd learned that, both nights since the dinner, he hadn't gone home, which meant that either he slept on base or didn't sleep at all. And he did look tired. No, more than tired. He looked weary, a tiredness beyond the mere physical.

At around seven o'clock Monday night, Sam went to Daniel's office. He was hunched over a stone tablet inscribed with strange characters. As she watched, he took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, sighing deeply.

Daniel became aware of her presence and looked at her for a moment. He then put his glasses back on, eyes again on the tablet.

"Hey," he said.

"Daniel, you need to go home. You're exhausted."

"I'm all right. I'm used to long hours. And I've got a lot of work to do. I've been getting behind lately."

"Well, it won't do you or anyone else any good if you collapse from exhaustion."

Daniel didn't reply to that. "Was there something you needed?" he asked.

Frowning, Sam stared at him. "Jack wants us to have a movie night tomorrow. I guess he bought some new videos that he's dying to play for Teal'c."

Daniel sighed again. "I really shouldn't. I have a big translation job that I'm trying to get done."

"Would a few hours away really make that much of a difference? Jack will wonder what's going on if you don't come."

Daniel's grip on the tablet tightened. "Right. We must keep up our pretense of romance, mustn't we."

Sam stared even harder at him, certain that she'd heard a touch of bitterness in his voice. What the hell was wrong with him?

"You know, maybe you're right," she said, a little angry. "Maybe you should just stay here and work yourself to death."

Daniel closed his eyes, his head dipping almost to his chest.

"I'm sorry," he murmured. "I . . . I guess I am overworking." He gave a shaky sigh. "I'll be there for the movie night."

Sam's emotions softened. "And will you go home tonight at a decent hour? I know that you've been here all night the last two days."

Daniel nodded. "I promise."

Sam gave him a look of concern. "I'm just worried about you, Daniel. I care about you."

Daniel's face turned away. "I know you do. Thanks."

Sam's frown returned. This time, she could have sworn that the tone in his voice had been sadness.

"Okay, I'll, um . . . see you tomorrow," she said.

Daniel nodded, still not looking at her. "Good night, Sam."

Sam hesitated a moment longer, then left.

Daniel lifted his head and stared at the empty doorway, feeling tired all the way down to his soul. The tiredness had less to do with the virtual lack of sleep and more to do with the heavy weight of sorrow that was bearing down on him. Of all the women in the galaxy that he could fall in love with, why did it have to be one whose heart belonged to someone else? Was he forever doomed to be unlucky in love?

Deciding that perhaps it really would be a good idea to go home, Daniel got up and went to the locker room. He tiredly changed into his civvies. A short while later, he was on his way home. Once he got there, he went straight to bed, not feeling hungry. But, like the previous three nights, sleep did not come. The minutes, then hours ticked by as he stared up at the ceiling, trying to figure out how he was going to get past this terrible ache inside him. He knew he could do it. He'd gotten through those first horrible days after Sha're's death. If he could do that, he could do this. He _had_ to. There was no other choice.

* * *

Jack watched Daniel with a deep frown. Something was going on. The man looked like hell, dark circles under dull eyes, a weary slouch to his posture. He looked like he needed a solid week of sleep. But there was more to it than that. During these past couple of weeks, he'd been so up. Now he was just the opposite. Oh, he was trying to act like nothing was wrong, but his performance was more than a bit under par tonight.

And then there was Sam. She didn't look all that happy either. She was often looking at Daniel with a concerned expression. Though they sat together on the couch, they did not hold hands, they did not put their arms around each other, they barely even touched at all, except for the couple times that Sam laid a hand on the archeologist's arm. Had something happened between them?

Daniel excused himself to go use the bathroom. He knew that he wasn't convincing anyone that he was all right. He was just too tired to find the energy to put on a convincing act. He couldn't wait to leave, to be in the privacy of his home. He was going to take a sleeping pill tonight, one of the heavy-duty ones he had left over from the last time he received an injury and couldn't sleep because of the discomfort.

Returning from the bathroom, Daniel paused to look at the three people in the living room. Jack and Teal'c were both engrossed in the movie. Sam's eyes, however, were on Jack, a wistful expression on her face.

Seeing that look was like the straw that broke the camel's back, that broke Daniel's heart. God, he couldn't do this anymore. He just couldn't. He had to put an end to it before his heart shattered completely.

Saying that he was really tired and needed to get some sleep, he told everyone that he was going home. They'd taken separate cars, but Sam insisted on following him home, saying that she wanted to make sure he got there okay, without falling asleep at the wheel.

At his apartment building, Sam got out of her car and went with him to the front entrance. He stopped, keys in his hand, eyes on the door.

"Good night, Sam. I'll see you tomorrow."

The astrophysicist made no move to leave. "Daniel, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm just tired."

There was a long silence, then, "Daniel, why are you lying to me?"

Daniel's head dropped, his eyes closing, shoulders slumping. He took a deep breath. "I can't do it anymore, Sam," he whispered.

"Do what?"

"Pretend to be your boyfriend."

Sam was shocked by the statement. "I don't understand. Why?"

"I can't talk about it. Please, Sam. I just can't do it anymore. I'm . . . I'm sorry that I'm letting you down."

"Daniel, please tell me what's wrong."

"I can't. Please don't ask again." Daniel unlocked the door and slipped inside, making it clear that she was not to come in with him. "I'll . . . I'll see you in the morning."

Not looking at her, he shut the door, the lock automatically clicking into place. Sam watched him through the glass as he walked to the elevator. The doors opened almost immediately, and he disappeared inside.

Sam's thoughts were deeply troubled on the drive home. What had happened? Why was Daniel acting this way? What had driven him to back out of their plan? It had to be something really big.

Sam pulled up in front of her house, but didn't get out. Instead, she sat deep in thought, very worried about Daniel. Strangely, she wasn't the least bit unhappy that this was going to put a halt to their efforts to make Jack jealous. She didn't care about that right now. All she cared about was Daniel. He had very clearly been upset.

All at once, Sam decided that she had to know tonight what was upsetting her friend so much. Figuring that he would probably be unhappy about her showing up, she restarted the car and drove to his apartment. Fortunately, he'd given her a key to the main entrance for the times that she came to feed his fish when he was in the infirmary, so she didn't have to buzz him.

The look on Daniel's face when he opened his door confirmed her belief that he would not be happy to see her.

"Sam, I said I couldn't talk about it," he said.

Sam slipped inside. "I know, Daniel, but I think I deserve an explanation. I'm also worried about you. It's pretty obvious that you're upset about something."

Daniel shut the door. He didn't want to do this. He _couldn't_ do this.

"Did Jack say something?" Sam asked, her tone making it clear that she was going to get an answer one way or another.

"What? No, Jack didn't say a thing."

"Then what happened?"

Daniel walked across the room. He went to the fireplace and stared down at the unlit logs, hands buried deep in his pockets.

"You don't want to know," he said in a voice so low that Sam almost didn't hear.

She stepped closer to him. "Yes, I do, Daniel."

Daniel closed his eyes, knowing that he wasn't going to get out of telling her. "I can't pretend to be your boyfriend anymore because I'm . . . feeling things."

Sam frowned, not understanding what he was saying. "Feeling things?"

"Things that I know I shouldn't, things that . . . that I know you'll never feel for me."

Suddenly, Sam realized what Daniel was saying, and the knowledge struck her with stunning force. Oh my God.

"I-I don't know what to say," she stammered.

Daniel's face was completely turned away from her now. "I never planned for this to happen. I never even imagined that it _could_ happen. I just . . ." he sighed, long and deep, "I just need to be alone, all right? I'll be fine. I just need some time."

Sam stayed rooted in place, still shocked by the turn of events.

"Please, Sam," Daniel pleaded. "Please go."

Sam didn't want to go and leave Daniel alone, but what could she say? What could she do? This was so unexpected.

"I'm so sorry, Daniel," she said, then turned and left. 


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

The next morning, Sam couldn't work. Her mind simply could not focus on the task at hand. She'd gotten no sleep to speak of last night, lying awake all night thinking about Daniel and what he'd confessed. When all this began, she'd considered a number of things that might happen as a result of their plan to make Jack jealous, but this was something she could never have foreseen. They really needed to talk about it, but Sam still didn't know what to say. The truth was that she was a little nervous about facing Daniel. But he was her best friend, and he was hurting. What kind of friend would she be if she pulled away from him now? They could find a way to get through this.

But how was Daniel going to feel if she and Jack ever did get together?

Another hour had passed before Sam finally decided that she had to at least go to see how Daniel was doing. When she got to his office, however, she found it empty, the lights turned off. Hadn't he come to work today?

Sam was in the process of dialing the front gate to see if Daniel ever arrived when Jack came in.

"When you weren't in your lab or anywhere around there, I decided to check here," he said. "I see that I was right."

Sam put down the phone. "Sir, didn't Daniel come in today?"

"No. He called Hammond this morning and requested the day off. He didn't say why, just that it was a personal issue. I tried calling him at home and on his cell, but he didn't answer."

Sam's eyes closed, her heart aching for her friend. She knew why Daniel had requested the leave. He felt that he couldn't face her.

"I'm betting that you know what's going on," Jack said, "and by the look on your face, I'm also betting that it isn't good. I could tell that something was wrong last night. Did you guys have a fight?"

Sam blinked away tears. "No," she whispered. "No, we didn't have a fight. I can't talk about it, Jack. It's personal."

"Well, since it seems to be adversely affecting a member of my team, I'd say that gives me the right to know, Carter."

The use of her last name made Sam realize that Jack was definitely not happy. The look on his face confirmed it.

In that moment, Sam realized that there was one really big advantage to being a civilian and that now was the time to use that advantage.

She lifted her chin and frostily said, "With all due respect, _Colonel_, it's none of your business. Now, if you will excuse me, I've got work to do." She strode past him, never looking back and, therefore, never seeing the surprised expression on his face.

* * *

When the knock came on Daniel's door that evening, he feared that it was Sam. He was tempted not to answer, but anyone who knew his car would know that he was home, having seen it in his parking space.

Bracing himself, Daniel opened the door to find not Sam but Jack on the other side, which was almost as bad.

"Daniel," the man greeted.

"Jack."

Several seconds passed without anyone moving.

"So, are you going to let me in or are we going to have this conversation in the hall?" Jack asked.

With a weary sigh, Daniel stepped aside, allowing the older man to enter.

"So, what's going on?" Jack questioned. "And don't tell me nothing's wrong. I'm not so stupid as to believe that. I pressed Sam about it, and she basically told me to go jump in a lake, though not in so many words."

"It's personal," Daniel replied shortly.

"Personal. Yeah, that's what she said. Well, I've already figured out that 'personal' means that something is going on between you two. She said you didn't have a fight, but I'm not sure I believe her."

Daniel turned away and went to a window. "No, we didn't have a fight," he said in a low voice.

"But this _is_ about your relationship, isn't it."

Daniel closed his eyes. He might as well say it and get it over with. Maybe this would result in something good. Maybe it would end with Sam getting Jack after all. At least two people would be happy, then.

"It's over," Daniel said in a sad, quiet voice.

"What?"

"Me and Sam. It's over."

Jack stood unmoving, shocked by the announcement. During these days that they'd been dating, Daniel and Sam had seemed so happy. He'd seen them smile more often than all the previous years combined.

"Why?" he asked.

"Does it matter? It's over. That's all that matters."

There was no mistaking the deep pain in Daniel's voice. Jack stepped up to him.

"Daniel, I don't know what happened between you, but there must be some way it can be fixed. Okay, so I was pretty mad about the whole thing to begin with, and I'll admit that I didn't want to see it at first, but you guys make a great couple. You're perfect for each other and make each other happy." Jack paused. "And it was nice seeing you move past losing Sha're. I know how much you loved her."

Daniel's eyes closed even tighter against the tears. He felt a hand upon his shoulder.

"Don't give up, Daniel," Jack said gently. "Fight for her. Don't let her get away. Take that from someone who knows what it's like to lose the woman they love because they didn't fight to keep her. I don't want you to live with the same regrets I still have about Sara. There's not a day that goes by that I don't wish I hadn't given up so easily. That's what you'll feel if you let this end without a fight."

Daniel moved away a few paces. "You don't understand, Jack. Sam never loved me. She loves you. It was always you." He drew in a shaky breath. "And I know that you love her, too."

That rooted Jack to the spot.

"This thing with me and Sam should never have happened," Daniel said. "It was a mistake right from the start. It's you two that belong together. All you need to do is go ask her, and she'll be yours." The last few words came out more than a little shaky.

Daniel wiped away the single tear that had escaped. "I-I can't talk about this anymore. Just leave, Jack. Go and be happy with Sam. You both deserve it."

Unable to be in the same room as the man anymore, Daniel hurried away to his bedroom and shut the door. He slowly sat on the bed, his head lowering onto his hands. God, this hurt. He felt like his heart was going to explode from the pain. When Sha're died, he'd thought that he could never hurt that much again. He'd been wrong.

Daniel didn't know how much time had passed when he heard the bedroom door open. He didn't look up as Jack came in and sat on the bed a few feet away.

"You're wrong, Daniel," the man said. "Sam and I don't belong together."

"Please don't insult me by lying, Jack. I know that you love her."

Jack sighed. "Yes, you're right. I do love her. I have for a while now. But love isn't always enough, Daniel. I found that out a very long time ago. Even if Sam and I did get together, I wouldn't lay odds upon it lasting very long. We're just too different. Oh, I know that in those other two realities, she and I were a couple, but that was them. They weren't the same people as us." There was a long pause. "And neither of those Sams had you in their lives. You and Sam could have a whole lot more than just love. You already do. I meant it when I said you were a great couple. You've got everything it takes to make a relationship that lasts."

Daniel shook his head. "No. No, we don't. Maybe you do need more than just love to have a successful relationship, but love is necessary, and that's the one thing we don't have, not . . . not both of us."

"Are you sure?"

Daniel let out a sad sigh. "Yes, I'm sure." At last he lifted his head and looked at Jack. "You told me not to give up on Sam, but you're the one who shouldn't give up, Jack. You could be wrong. You and Sam could be good together. And she feels things for you that she'll . . ." his voice broke, "that she'll never feel for me. You shouldn't let that get away." Daniel got up from the bed. "I'd really rather be alone right now, Jack."

The colonel hesitated, then rose to his feet. He felt torn. He was hurting for Daniel, yet, at the same time, he couldn't help but wonder if the man was right. Could he and Sam have a future together? But how happy would such a relationship be with the thought hanging over their heads that the man they both considered their best friend was being hurt every time he saw them together? Dammit. Why did everything have to be so messed up? Two men being in love with the same woman never resulted in a happy ending for all.

"I'm sorry, Daniel," Jack said, having no other words. He left the apartment and drove around for over an hour, thinking about everything that had happened. At last, he headed toward home. He was halfway there when he changed his mind. He called the base and learned that Sam had left for the day. He then changed directions and went to her place. He sat parked outside for a solid two minutes before finally getting out and heading up the walkway.

When Sam looked out the window in the door to see who it was, she was surprised and dismayed that it was Jack. Reluctantly, she opened the door.

"Sir," she said, maintaining a formal tone.

"It's still 'Jack', Sam," he responded. "May I come in?"

Sam let him inside.

"I just left Daniel's," he told her. He turned to her. "He told me that your relationship is over."

Sam couldn't keep the surprise out of her voice. "He did?"

"He told me some other things as well."

Sam began to worry that Daniel had spilled the beans about the whole charade. "What did he say?"

"That you never loved him, that it was me you loved."

Sam blushed brightly.

Seeing her reaction, Jack continued. "We've never talked about this thing between us since that stuff with the Zartarc test. I have thought about it . . . a lot."

"Me too."

"But I came to realize that, regulations or not, you and I probably wouldn't work out. What do we have in common? What would we talk about? Where would we go for fun? You don't like most of the things I do, and I don't like or just plain don't understand most of the things you like. This is why I didn't come to you after you left the Air Force. I really wasn't sure if starting something with you would be a good idea."

Sam felt a new ache growing in her heart alongside the one for Daniel. Jack was telling her that they'd never be together.

"I told some of this to Daniel, and you know what he said? He said that I shouldn't give up on a relationship with you. The guy's heart is shattered into a million pieces, and he's telling me to go after you."

Tears welled into Sam's eyes. "How is he?"

"Not good. He's in a hell of a lot of pain. He loves you an awful lot, Sam."

Sam turned away. She felt horrible about how much Daniel was hurting, knowing that it was because of her.

"Was he right, Sam?" Jack asked. "Do you not love him?"

"I-I do love him as a friend. He's the best friend I've ever had."

"Then you're saying that you're not _in_ love with him. In that case, I'd sure like to know why you started dating him. If you ask me, it was pretty cruel to date a guy who's in love with you but you don't love back."

"You don't understand. It wasn't like that."

"Then what _was_ it like?"

"It was a hoax!" Sam exclaimed, whirling about to face him. "It was never real. After I left the Air Force, I thought that you'd say something about us, but you never did. How was I to know that you were having doubts about us? You never talked to me. Daniel volunteered to play my boyfriend to make you jealous." Feeling excruciatingly embarrassed, Sam turned away again.

Jack was utterly shocked by the revelation. The whole thing had been an act put on in an effort to make him jealous and drive him into making a move on Sam? No, it hadn't all been an act. It might have been for Sam, but Daniel's feelings were very real.

He spoke that last thought aloud. "Well, _you_ may have been acting, but, obviously, Daniel wasn't."

"He was at first," Sam whispered.

"Are you saying that he fell in love with you somewhere along the way?" He got a faint nod from Sam. "Well, I'm guessing _that_ wasn't part of the plan," he responded bitingly.

"Please, Jack," Sam pleaded, now crying in earnest. "Don't you think I feel bad enough about this? I would never in a million years want to hurt Daniel."

Jack sighed, curbing his anger. "I know, Sam. I'm sorry." He came up to her and turned her around. Seeing the pain and tears on her face, he gently took her into his arms. Welcoming the gesture of comfort, Sam wrapped her arms about his waist.

Outside, Daniel stood frozen in place, watching through a crack in the drapes as Jack and Sam stood in each other's arms. He'd gotten up the nerve to come to Sam and talk to her about the whole thing, to let her know that he'd be okay. When he saw Jack's car parked in front of her house, he'd almost left, but some masochistic part of him made him come up and look in the window.

He'd been wrong. He _wasn't_ okay. He was anything _but_ okay. Jack and Sam were going to be a couple, and he'd have to watch every day as their relationship progressed into something that he wanted with Sam more than anything in the world.

Spinning around, Daniel hurried back to his car and drove away.

* * *

Sam was attempting without much success to get her project finished when a call came requesting that she come to General Hammond's office. When she got there, she found Jack and Teal'c there as well.

"I must inform you that Doctor Jackson has requested an indefinite leave of absence," the general announced.

"What?" Sam and Jack exclaimed.

"I tried to find out the reason for it, but he would not tell me. I was tempted to deny his request, but he made it clear that, if I did, he'd resign."

"Oh, no," Sam gasped.

Hammond's eyes focused on her. "I'm not one to pry into the personal affairs of people under my command, especially if they are both civilians, but it's obvious that whatever happened to make him do this was pretty serious. Doctor Jackson is an extremely valuable member of this program, and I don't want to lose him. So I would suggest that, whatever problem led to this, you do your best to fix it. I won't file the paperwork until Monday. That gives you four days, including today, to do something to convince him to stay. If any of you need to leave the base to accomplish that, you have my permission. In fact, you can consider yourself off-duty for however much time it takes you to convince him not to leave."

"Yes, sir."

Jack, Sam and Teal'c left the general, heading immediately for the privacy of Daniel's office.

"Dammit!" Jack cursed loudly once the door was closed.

"This is all my fault," Sam whispered brokenly. "I should never have agreed to do it."

"Of what do you speak?" Teal'c asked.

Haltingly, Sam explained the whole thing to him, too upset about Daniel to feel embarrassed. The frown on the Jaffa's face clearly expressed what he felt about the situation.

"You must speak with Daniel Jackson," he stated firmly.

"I don't know what to say!" Sam cried. "I don't know what to do to keep him from leaving."

"Perhaps it is time for you to examine your true feelings for him."

Sam stared at him. "What do you mean?"

"When I believed that you and Daniel Jackson were lovers, I observed you closely. The happiness I saw when you and he were together was not false. The pleasure upon your face when he touched you and when he kissed you was not an act."

Sam blushed crimson. "I-I. . . . Okay, yes, it did feel good. I've really enjoyed all the time I've spent with him lately. And . . . and, okay, so I admit that having him hold me and kiss me was . . . really nice. But I am a woman, after all, and Daniel is very attractive. What woman _wouldn't_ enjoy being held and kissed by him?"

Jack was staring at Sam, the truth dawning. He'd always prided himself on his instincts, on his ability to spot things that were off. That's why he'd been so shocked to find out that Daniel and Sam's dating had been a ruse to make him jealous. He couldn't understand how his instincts had failed to detect that something was amiss. Maybe there was a reason why they had, that reason being that beneath Daniel and Sam's act were genuine feelings for each other, feelings that neither of them had been aware of before.

That thought led to another. Though the idea of Sam being in love with Daniel was painful, it didn't hurt nearly as much as it should have, not like it did in the beginning. Why? Perhaps it was because Jack's instincts had been right yet again, and he and Sam really weren't meant to be.

"Go talk to him, Sam," he said softly. "Don't let him go."

* * *

Daniel laid a shirt in the suitcase. He picked up another from the pile on the bed, carefully folded it, and placed it atop the previous one. He was running away, choosing the only path he believed he could take. The archeologist thought about the vision that Sha're gave to him through Amaunet's ribbon device. In that vision, he quit the SGC and had planned to go off and find the farthest dig he could. That vision was now becoming reality. He hadn't exactly quit the program, but he was now packing, intent upon going off to a distant dig. He still had some friends in the archeological community and had called one of them last night. He was told about a dig that would really benefit from his knowledge and expertise, one run by people who would have no issue with Daniel's past.

Daniel couldn't wait to leave, to lose himself in work thousands of miles away from the Stargate, from the battle with the Goa'uld . . . from Sam and Jack. After several months of hard work, he was sure that he'd feel better and would be prepared to return to the SGC and resume his role in helping fight the Goa'uld. If he was lucky, his feelings for Sam would fade to the point where he could watch her with Jack and not feel like he was being stabbed in the heart with a knife. And if not. . . . If not, the SGC would carry on fine without him. His vision self was right about that. The program didn't need him. He could say goodbye to it forever and rededicate his life to his first passion: archeology. Perhaps in time, he would regain his standing in the community, especially since he would never again say one word about alien landing platforms, something that had turned out to be true.

And this would be so much better for Jack and Sam, too. Daniel knew that, as long as he was around, they'd feel guilty about their relationship, which couldn't help but put a strain on it. With him gone, they wouldn't have to feel bad every time they were together in his company.

Yes, this really was the best solution for everyone.

Daniel stiffened upon hearing a knock on his door. By now, Hammond would have told Jack, Sam and Teal'c about the leave of absence, and Daniel knew that the person knocking was one of them. He'd been hoping that he would get out of here before one of his teammates showed up. He should have known better.

With a sigh, Daniel went to the door. He looked out of the peep hole, his heart sinking upon seeing Sam. Jack would have been easier to deal with.

Really wishing that he could somehow avoid this, Daniel opened the door. He didn't say anything, just standing aside to allow her entrance.

"General Hammond told us that you've requested an indefinite leave of absence," she said.

Daniel nodded, not meeting her eyes. "Yes."

"So, you're running away."

Daniel's eyes flickered up to hers for a moment, seeing both anger and pain there.

"I think it's for the best," he responded softly.

"Best for who?"

"For everyone. You and Jack will feel better not having me around to watch you . . . together. You'll be free to start a life with each other without feeling guilty. And I. . . ." Daniel shrugged. "I'll feel better, too."

Instead of soothing her, Daniel's words made Sam even angrier. "Why are you so certain that Jack and I are going to be together?"

Daniel finally met her eyes. "I saw you, Sam," he admitted in a tone of heartache. "I went to your house last night to talk. Jack was there, and I saw you together. You were . . . in each other's arms."

All of Sam's anger drained away. "Oh, Daniel."

He turned away, moving into the living room. "I just can't watch it, Sam. I know I'm being weak and a coward, but I just can't watch you with Jack. I-I . . . I care too much for you."

Sam followed him into the room. "Daniel, you have it all wrong. Jack and I were hugging because I was upset about you. I told him everything, Daniel, about the plan to make him jealous. He knows it all."

Daniel shook his head. "It doesn't really change anything, Sam. You're in love with him, and he's in love with you. In time, you'll be together, and I don't want you to feel bad every time you see me. With me not around you'll be a lot happier."

Sam was about to object when she spied something on the floor, a box full of books, more books stacked beside it. She looked around and saw still more boxes. A horrible, sinking feeling filled her.

"You're going away."

Daniel saw what she was looking at. "I'm going on a dig in Egypt. I'm leaving tonight. I'll be gone for at least a few months, so I figured there was no sense in continuing to pay rent here. A moving company is coming tomorrow to pack up the rest of my stuff and put it in storage. I just want to pack the important things myself."

The pain inside Sam began to grow. Daniel was leaving, going away to a distant land. And, once he left, they'd probably never see him again. He'd never return.

Daniel was walking away from her, his shoulders stiff.

"I need to finish packing, Sam," he said in an emotionless voice. "I don't have a lot of time."

After a couple of seconds, Sam followed him into the bedroom. The sight of the half-filled suitcase made her feel like a part of her was dying inside.

"Daniel, please," she begged. "Please don't leave."

Daniel looked at her, and she saw the tears on his face.

"I have to, Sam. Don't you see that? I can't stay. Please don't ask me to."

"But I don't want you to go. Just the thought of you leaving. . . ." Sam began to cry. "God, Daniel. Please don't do this."

Unable to bear seeing her tears, Daniel turned away, which was why he was totally unprepared for what happened next. In an act of desperation, Sam rushed across the distance between them, spun Daniel around, and pressed her lips against his. Daniel stiffened in shock. But he could not fight the feelings that welled inside him at the touch of her mouth on his. With a tortured groan, he crushed her against him. His tongue thrust into the heat of her mouth, and he was suddenly kissing her with ravenous hunger and need. Sam kissed him back with equal passion.

Daniel took a step back. His legs hit the bed, and he found himself falling upon it, Sam on top of him. Neither of them paid any attention to the sound of the suitcase hitting the floor.

The feeling of Sam's body like that upon his shattered the last remnant of Daniel's control. He rolled on top of her, pressing her down into the bed with his full weight. Sam moaned into his mouth and bucked upward. His body responded.

Sam was wild with desire. It ran rampant through her, taking control of her mind and body. She began tugging at his shirt, trying to get it off, but Daniel stopped her.

"God, Sam, please," he rasped. "Don't do this if you don't really want it."

Sam captured his face between her hands and looked straight into his eyes. "I want it, Daniel. I thought it was Jack that I wanted, but I was so wrong. I want _you_, not him. I want _you_."

Staring into her eyes, Daniel saw the truth in her words. He didn't need anything more. His mouth came crashing back down onto hers in a heated kiss. After a few seconds, she resumed her effort to get his shirt off. With his help, it went flying across the room. He removed her top, her bra soon following. And then his mouth and hands were upon her, making her cry out.

Unable to stop the tide that was sweeping the two of them forward, Daniel got Sam's pants unfastened and pulled them and her panties down. Sam struggled to get them and her shoes off. Then she attacked Daniel's pants, managing to get them and his boxers down his hips. They were completely gone a moment later.

Daniel was back on top of her, her body telling him what she wanted. Heeding the silent plea, Daniel joined his body with hers. Sam moaned loudly, an echo of his own sound of rapture.

Going slow was something that was beyond both of them, this first union of bodies so intense that they could do nothing but ride out the storm. The feeling of being with her like this was so exquisite to Daniel that it was almost pain. He was very rapidly rising to culmination, but he didn't want to go over the edge without her. He did not know that Sam was on the same rapid journey to climax. In the next second, she began shuddering in his arms. He let loose with a cry to match hers and went hurtling over the edge with her.

Forever seemed to pass in those seconds of exquisite ecstacy. As it ended, they lay gasping and shaking, too weak to move. It was Sam who recovered first. She pulled Daniel's head up and took his mouth in a long, deep kiss. He returned it with thorough intensity. And then his eyes met hers, filled with so many questions.

Sam smiled up at him, cupped his cheek, and whispered, "I love you."

Daniel's chest tightened painfully. He wanted to believe her so badly, but he was afraid to.

Seeing his doubt, Sam continued. "I've been such an idiot, Daniel. I thought I was so in love with Jack, that he was the one I wanted. I couldn't see the truth, that, all this time, I've been falling in love with you, right from the day we met. When we were pretending to be in a relationship, it felt really good. Every time you touched me or kissed me, I wanted it to happen again. But I was blind to what that really meant. It wasn't until I thought I was going to lose you that I realized how empty my life would be if you left." She touched his face. "I love you, Daniel, you and _only_ you."

With a smile of joy, Daniel pressed his lips to hers.

"I love you," he murmured against them.

Reluctantly, they separated, but only for the seconds it took to get under the covers. It may have been the middle of the day, but neither of them had any intention of doing anything except exploring their newfound love.

And that is what they did, making love twice more before the sun set. From the bedroom phone, Daniel called the airline and canceled his flight. Later, as Sam made dinner to feed their starving bodies, he called his archeologist friend and explained that his plans had changed and he wouldn't be going on that dig after all. There was no longer any reason to run away.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

After dinner, the new lowers sat curled together on the couch, their touches a great deal more intimate than any they'd shared while putting on their act for Jack.

They'd been sitting together in contented silence for a while when Daniel spoke.

"Sam, I know that you're telling the truth when you say that you love me. . . ." His voice trailed off, the rest of the sentence left unspoken because of uncertainty that it should be uttered.

"You want to know about Jack," Sam guessed. "It's all right for you to ask, Daniel. I would if I were you. I won't lie and say I didn't feel anything for him. You know that I did. But now that I'm not being so stupid and blind, I realize that he was a . . . a safety net."

Daniel frowned. "A safety net?"

"I've never had a successful relationship, Daniel. No matter how great they seemed to be, they always ended with me getting hurt. The relationship with Jonas ended badly, and I hurt for a long time afterwards. Then I met Narim, and he was wonderful. I really came to care about him. But then we had to say goodbye, and it hurt a lot. And then Martouf came along. There were such deep feelings for him, but I didn't know if all I felt was a remnant of Jolinar's love for him. I _did_ know that, even if I came to love him for myself and we started a relationship, I'd always have to say goodbye to him, unless I became a Tok'ra, something I knew I could never do."

Sam stared down at their linked hands. "I don't know exactly when it was that I started feeling something for Jack. Maybe it started during that whole thing with that alternate universe version of me. I guess it doesn't really matter, except that it happened after meeting Narim and Martouf, after I'd been hurt twice in the space of a year by feeling things for men that I had to say goodbye to. I think that, deep down inside, I believed that I was doomed to always get hurt, that if I let myself have a relationship with someone, they'd eventually leave, and I'd be alone. With Jack, I didn't have to worry about that because he and I could never be together. If we could never be together, the relationship would never end, and I'd never get hurt. It was safe to love him, and it kept me safe from being hurt by someone else." Sam's eyes closed for a moment. "When Martouf died, I think that I clung onto those feelings for Jack even tighter. But I know now that I never really loved him, not like I love you."

"You just _wanted_ to love him because it was safe," Daniel surmised.

"Subconsciously, yes." Sam looked at him. "And all that time that I was feeling things for Narim, and Martouf, and Jack, I didn't see that I lost my heart to you in that map room on Abydos. If you hadn't been married. . . ."

Daniel smiled broadly. "If I hadn't been married, I'd probably have asked you out on a date after we got back from Simarka."

Sam's eyebrows lifted. "Simarka?"

"Uh huh. I have a confession to make, Sam. These feelings I have for you, I don't think they're exactly . . . new."

"What are you saying?"

"I loved Sha're. She was the center of my world during my time on Abydos, and, before she died, getting her back was my obsession, the thing I'd have done almost anything for. But, since I met you, there have been a few times when I . . . felt things regarding you that I shouldn't have. I ignored them, explained them away, but, looking back on it now, I can't deny that they happened."

Daniel's admission had really surprised Sam. "What things?"

"The first time was when you were wearing that blue dress on Simarka. You were so beautiful that you took my breath away. I couldn't stop staring at you."

"You've got to be kidding! That dress was horrid, and that headdress thing was ludicrous!"

Daniel chuckled softly. "Okay, so the headdress was a bit overstated, but you still looked beautiful. The second time was when I walked in on you and Narim kissing. It didn't bother me a lot, but there was still the tiniest twinge of jealousy. When I found you and Martouf holding hands and looking at each other so . . . intently, it was a heck of a lot more than just a twinge."

Sam stared at Daniel. "You were jealous?"

"Oh, yeah. But I refused to believe that it was jealousy. I just figured I was worried about you, concerned that you'd get hurt. We didn't know all that much about the Tok'ra at that time, how trustworthy they were. I chalked it up to brotherly protective feelings."

Sam laughed a bit at that. "I guess I should admit that I was incredibly jealous of Ke'ra."

Daniel's brows rose. "You were."

"Yep. But, like you, I reasoned that it was just protectiveness, worry that you were jumping into something because of your grief over Sha're and you'd end up really getting hurt."

Daniel shook his head. "Well, you were right about that. I was in a lot of pain, and I guess I needed something to make me feel . . . alive again. Even if Ke'ra hadn't turned out to be Linea, I doubt that our relationship would have gone anywhere. I'd eventually have realized that I was using her as a substitute for Sha're, a . . . band-aid for my heart." He looked at the woman in his arms. "Sha're would not have approved of Ke'ra, but she _would_ approve of you. She would see what I see in you, the woman who's not just my friend and my lover but also the other half of my soul."

Moved beyond words by Daniel's declaration, Sam pulled his lips down to hers in a long kiss.

She looked deep into his eyes. "I feel the same, Daniel, and I know I always will."

The couple continued their quiet conversation. Eventually, the topic returned to Jack.

"He was the one who urged me to come here," Sam said, her head nestled beneath Daniel's chin.

"He was?"

"Yeah. I think he figured out what was going on before I did. I _know_ Teal'c did."

Daniel looked down at her. "Teal'c?"

"Oh, that's right. I didn't tell you what happened before I came over here."

"I'm almost afraid to find out."

Sam told him about the conversation in his office.

"Even then, I wasn't sure about my feelings," she said. "I couldn't believe that I was in love with you and hadn't even realized it. I thought that maybe it was just a physical thing." She tightened her hold on him. "But when I realized that you were going away, that I might never see you again, I knew that it was more than just an attraction. I knew that I loved you."

Daniel placed a soft kiss on her brow. "I'm glad you realized it before I left. I think that, once I left, I wouldn't have come back. A few months away from you couldn't possibly have made me love you less or made it hurt less to see you and Jack together."

The mention of Jack saddened Sam. "I just wish. . . ."

"What?"

"It's just that Jack. . . ."

"I know," Daniel said, understanding what she was trying to say. She was thinking about how the two of them being together would hurt their friend. But Daniel had a feeling about Jack, about the man's true emotions. "There's something he said to me yesterday that I have to wonder about. I think that, deep down inside, he's still in love with Sara."

Sam looked at him. "You do?"

Daniel nodded. "He admitted that he still regrets letting their relationship end."

Sam pondered on that. "Do you think there's some way that they could get back together?"

"I don't know. Charlie's death did a number on their relationship. It would take a lot to mend those bridges, although I think Jack already did to some extent after that incident with the crystal entity."

"Maybe we could help."

Daniel looked at her again, smiling. "Are you suggesting that we play matchmaker?"

"Well, no, not exactly. Perhaps we could just . . . give them a little push."

Daniel laughed softly and kissed her. "I'm still learning things about you. I bet I still will be fifty years from now."

Sam straddled his lap, pressing her hips against his. She watched as desire kindled in his eyes.

"Well, how about if we go back into the bedroom and I teach you a few more things about me?" Sam murmured huskily.

Daniel brought his lips close to hers. "I can't think of any lessons I'd enjoy more."

* * *

Janet was glancing over a chart when Daniel and Sam came walking into the infirmary. She took a double-take upon seeing them. They were both fairly glowing with happiness. Wondering what the reason for it was, she came up to them.

"My, you two certainly look pleased about something."

"Can we go to your office?" Sam asked. "We need to tell you something."

The three of them went to the office.

"The charade is over," Sam said. "No more making Jack jealous."

Janet's gaze sharpened. "Sam, are you saying that he finally made his move?"

"Nope. It's over because I figured out that I'm not in love with Jack, that I was probably never truly in love with him." Sam smiled at Daniel. "There's someone else that my heart belongs to."

Janet's eyes widened. "My God, I was right!"

That got a surprised look from both of the scientists.

"What do you mean you were right?" Daniel asked.

"It was just a suspicion I had after the dinner at my place, when you two were apparently so lost in that kiss that you were totally unaware of what was going on with Jack."

The statement got smiles of mild embarrassment from the new lovers.

"Yes, well, Daniel was the only one that night who was really aware of his feelings," Sam said. "I was still in denial, even though Daniel pretty much blew my socks off with that kiss."

Janet smiled. "Well, now I can genuinely tell you that I'm happy for you. What I said on that day you made your announcement are things that I really do believe. I think you're going to be very happy together." Her smile faded. "But what about the colonel?"

"Actually, Sam and I are hoping that we're right about something," Daniel replied, "and we're really hoping that Jack does something about it. I'm going to be doing a bit of . . . pushing in that direction in a little while."

* * *

It hadn't been easy for Jack to stop himself from calling Daniel yesterday. But he'd decided to leave it in Sam's hands to keep the man from leaving them. And Jack knew without a doubt that if Daniel carried through on in his plans to take a leave of absence from the SGC, he truly would leave them, forever. Not long after they found Sha're's son, and Jack finally knew for certain that Daniel had been telling the truth about the vision from Sha're, he'd gotten the whole story out of the archeologist, learned what happened in those brief seconds that had seemed like days to Daniel. In that vision, Daniel walked away from them, left the SGC, fully intending to leave the country. If he did it in that vision, it was likely that he'd do it in real life, if he felt that he needed to.

Jack was coming around a corner of the corridor when he saw something that made him halt in his tracks. Up ahead were Sam and, to Jack's delight, Daniel. The two scientists were close together, smiling and talking to each other. There was an intimacy about their body language that no one could mistake. As Jack watched, Daniel brushed a hand over Sam's cheek, smiling at her with an expression of utter love. She returned the smile with the same expression.

Two feelings warred inside Jack for supremacy, happiness for his friends and sadness for himself. There was no doubt that his chances of getting together with Sam were dead and buried. She'd found the true love of her life, and it wasn't him. But, if he was really honest with himself, he'd have to admit that he was okay with that. He'd done quite a bit of soul-searching these past couple of weeks and learned a lot of things about his own feelings – and not just regarding Sam.

Jack quickly disappeared around the corner before the couple could see him. He went to his office by a different route and sat at his desk. Opening his drawer, Jack took out a photo, one of Sara and him on their tenth wedding anniversary. He didn't know why he'd kept it after all these years. He just hadn't had the heart to part with it, nor with all the other photos he had of the woman he'd spent the happiest years of his life with. There were still times when he missed her so much that he ached to pick up the phone and call her. He never followed through on the desire. It was over between him and Sara, just as his hope of being with Sam was over. Perhaps he was meant to be alone, a lone wolf never finding a life mate.

A knock on the door made Jack quickly put away the photo. He picked up some papers in an effort to look busy.

"Come in."

The visitor was Daniel, who came into the office a bit hesitantly.

"Well, I see that you didn't go on your leave after all," Jack said.

"Um . . . no."

"So, I assume this means that you and Sam got everything sorted out."

Daniel took a seat. "Yeah. Um . . . Jack, Sam and I. . . ."

"You don't have to tell me, Daniel. I already know. You and she really are together now."

Daniel's gaze was on the desk. "I'm sorry. I know you care a lot about her."

"Yes, I do, but I also care about her as a friend, Daniel, just like I do about you, and it makes me glad when my friends are happy."

Surprised by the statement, Daniel stared at him. It had been a long time since Jack had been open in any way about their friendship. The man's words also made Daniel a little ashamed.

"I wish I could have said the same thing," he murmured. "When I thought that you and Sam were going to be together, I tried to be happy for you. I really did. But. . . ."

"It hurt too much."

Daniel nodded. "I saw you and Sam at her place after you and I talked. I thought it meant that you guys were getting together, and . . . and it hurt, a lot."

"Is that when you decided to take that leave of absence and go off somewhere?"

Daniel looked at him in surprise. "How did you know that I was leaving town?"

"An educated guess."

"Oh. I was going to go on a dig."

"Just like in that vision of Sha're's."

Daniel sighed. "Yeah."

"Well, I'm glad those plans got canceled. You didn't tell me exactly what I said in that vision to try to get you to stay, but, whatever it was, it should have included that we need you around here."

"You, uh, didn't exactly say that, but the sentiment was there."

"Good. Daniel, let me make one thing clear. I'm okay with this. Yes, it hurts, but I've gone through a hell of a lot worse and survived. I'll be fine. You and Sam really do belong together. You'll make each other happy, something I really don't think she and I would have been."

Daniel looked straight into his eyes. "Not like you were with Sara?"

Jack's expression hardened. "That's old news, Daniel, not up for discussion."

Daniel nodded faintly and got to his feet. "When you thought that Sam and I had broken up, you told me not to give up. You told me to fight for her, that you didn't want me to go through the same regrets you did with Sara."

"That's different. Sara and I really are over, have been for years."

"But does it have to stay that way? It seems to me, Jack, that you should take some of your own advice and fight for the woman that I think you might still be in love with."

Saying nothing more, Daniel walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Jack glared at the closed door, hating that Daniel had turned his own words against him.

Almost of its own volition, Jack's hand reached back in the drawer and retrieved the anniversary photo. He stared at it as the minutes ticked by, remembering the happy moments he'd shared with Sara before it all fell apart.

Before he realized it, the phone was in his hand and he was dialing a number he hadn't called in years.

"Hello?" said a female voice that made Jack smile.

"Sara, it's Jack."

There was a very long pause. "Jack? Why are you calling? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about you and decided to call. How are you doing?"

"I'm good. Dad had a mild stroke a few months ago, but he's okay now."

"God, Sara. Why didn't you call me? I'd have been there for you."

"I know, but I didn't want to bother you. I know that you're busy."

"Never too busy to be there when you need me."

There was another long pause, then, "Thank you. It's . . . it's nice to hear that."

Jack sighed silently. "I guess there are a lot of things I didn't tell you, especially after Charlie died. I'm . . . I'm sorry for the way I was, Sara. I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you then like I should have been. You needed me, and I let you down. I didn't fight for us. You have no idea how much I regret that."

Jack heard a sound that made him realize that Sara was crying.

"I regret it, too," she whispered.

"You do?"

"Yes."

Jack decided to take a chance. "Sara, would you . . . would you like to have dinner sometime? You know, just for old time's sake."

Convinced that she was going to say no, Jack was stunned when she said yes.

"I'd like that," she added.

Jack couldn't stop the smile that covered his face. "So, when would you like to get together? I've got tomorrow off."

"That would be perfect."

"Great. Seven o'clock at Angelo's?"

Sara laughed. "You remember!"

"Where I took you on our first date? Of course I remember. I also remember the plate of pasta that ended up all over me when our waiter tripped over that woman's purse."

Sara laughed even harder. "Oh, he was so mortified. And the owner couldn't stop apologizing."

Jack chuckled. "Hey, we got two free dinners out of it, plus free dry cleaning for my suit and shirt."

Sara's laughter slowly faded. "Those were good times, weren't they."

"The best, Sara. The best." Jack paused. "So, I'll see you tomorrow, then. I'll pick you up."

"Okay. I'll see you then."

Jack hung up the phone, still smiling. Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.

* * *

It had been six weeks since Daniel and Sam became lovers for real. Three weeks ago, Sam had come very close to losing the man she loved when he became addicted to a device in a Goa'uld pleasure palace. She'd watched in horror and fear as, one by one, the members of SG-5 died, knowing that Daniel would be next. He had nearly plunged to his death off his apartment balcony, very likely would have if Jack hadn't been there to stop it. When, a few hours later, Daniel's heart had stopped while they were rushing him to the gate room, Sam felt like her heart had stopped right along with his. If she could have, she'd have rushed right through the Stargate with Jack, who'd borne the body of the clinically dead archeologist. The minutes that passed before Jack contacted them and told them that Daniel was alive were the longest minutes of Sam's life. She'd then had no choice but to wait a whole two weeks before she could see him again as he and the other members of SG-1, along with the teenaged boy they'd found, slowly weaned themselves off the addictive effects of the device.

But today was not a day to think about bad things. Today was a happy day. Sam and Daniel were on a double date with Jack and Sara, this being the second time they'd done so since Jack and Sara began seeing each other again.

Looking across the table at the colonel and his former wife, Daniel and Sam couldn't help but see the happiness on Jack's face. He'd been happier and more carefree during these weeks than either of them had ever seen. He smiled more, laughed more. It was great to see.

But then, he wasn't the only one whose whole outlook on life had been transformed. Since his wife's death, Daniel had been slowly descending into a pit of hopelessness. He hadn't realized how far he'd sunk until Sam's love turned it all around. Now, he looked forward to every day and once again had hope that they could really make a difference.

As for Sam, she'd never been this happy in her entire life. Being with Daniel brought her such joy that it made all the bad stuff that came with their job so much easier to bear. She couldn't wait to tell her father that she'd at last found true love. She knew that he'd accept Daniel with open arms.

As the pleasant, conversation-filled dinner came to an end, the two couples decided to go to a movie together. While Sara used the restroom, Daniel, Sam and Jack headed outside. They heard an unexpected voice call to them and turned to see General Hammond walking toward them, another man beside him.

"General, what a nice surprise," Jack said.

Hammond turned to the man he was with. "General Weatherly, this is Colonel O'Neill, Doctor Jackson and Doctor Carter."

The general shook all of their hands. "Colonel, doctors, it's nice to finally meet you. I've certainly heard plenty about you."

"Uh oh. That can't be good," Jack said with a small smile.

"On the contrary, George here has nothing but praise for all of you, and he's not the only one, which is why I'm delighted about this new development."

"What new development, sir?" Sam asked.

Weatherly smiled and looked at Hammond. "I'll let him be the one to tell you. George, I've got to get going. Thanks for the dinner. Next time, I buy."

Hammond smiled. "It's a deal, Elton."

As Weatherly walked away, Sara joined them.

"What was he talking about, General?" Jack asked his C.O.

"What was who talking about?" Sara asked. "Did something happen?"

Hammond looked at the three people under his command. "I was going to tell you in the morning, but I suppose I could go ahead and do so now. Come. Let's go into the parking lot where we have a bit of privacy."

They went to a section of the parking lot that had no cars.

"Normally for a conversation like this, I'd ask that Sara please excuse us," Hammond said, "but since she already knows about the program, she can stay."

Jack smiled at the woman he'd found love with again. Not long after they'd started dating, he'd requested permission to tell Sara about the Stargate Program. The initial reply from Washington was a resounding no, but after Jack pointed out that Sara was a witness to the events that transpired with the crystal entity and had never said a word to anyone, they were more inclined to believe that the secret of the Stargate would be safe with her. Hammond helped change the answer to 'yes'.

Being able to tell Sara about the program, about the dangers, fears and doubts Jack faced on a daily basis, had brought them much closer together, even closer in some ways than they had been when they were married. The secrecy of his job had always been between them, but not anymore. He couldn't tell her about ongoing missions, but she had accepted that limitation, satisfied that she could far more fully be a part of his life.

Jack's attention returned to Hammond when the man resumed speaking.

"You are probably unaware of this, but I have continued petitioning that Doctor Carter be allowed to return to the Air Force."

Sam gasped slightly.

"Sir, are you saying that you've succeeded?" Jack asked.

"No, but I have succeeded in another regard." Hammond turned to Sam with a warm smile. "Congratulations, Doctor. You are once again a member of SG-1."

A smile of pure delight beamed across Sam's face, and she threw her arms around Hammond, something she'd never have had the nerve to do when she was in the Air Force.

"Thank you so much, sir," she said.

Hammond returned the hug, smiling at her fondly. "It was my pleasure, Sam. Besides, this will mean that I no longer have to explain why a certain colonel keeps rejecting every new member of his team."

They all turned to Jack, who had the good grace to look slightly embarrassed. Captain Seacrest, the sixth person to take Sam's place on the team, had requested a transfer within an hour of SG-1's return from their enforced two-week stay on the planet with the Goa'uld pleasure palace, having had enough of Jack's attitude.

Daniel was delighted by the turn of events, knowing how much Sam had missed being on the team. It would be great to go on missions with her again.

It was then that a thought struck him.

"General, what does this mean for Sam and I?" he asked. "We'd be teammates again."

The look on Sam's face told Daniel that she hadn't thought of that.

"Don't worry, Doctor Jackson," Hammond said with a smile. "Everyone who gave the green light for this knows that you and Doctor Carter are in a relationship. It made my job a bit tougher, but they agreed that, as long as it didn't interfere with your performance on missions, you could continue dating. Now, if it ever did become a problem, then some decisions would have to be made."

"It won't be a problem, sir," Sam quickly said.

"I'll make sure of it," Jack added.

* * *

Two days later, the four members of SG-1 stood at the foot of the ramp as the Stargate dialed up. Daniel looked at Sam, smiling at the expression of eagerness on her face.

"It feels good, doesn't it," he said.

"You have no idea," she responded. "I knew that I'd missed going on missions, being with you guys out there, but I didn't really realize how much I'd missed it until now." Sam looked at him. "Daniel, if we hadn't gotten together and you'd left, gone off to Egypt, would you have missed going through the gate?"

"Yes," he replied without hesitation. "In the beginning, being on SG-1 and going through the gate was just a means to an end, a way to search for Sha're. But, well, it kind of gets in your blood."

Sam smiled. "Yes, it does."

"I could have lived without it, but a part of me would always have missed it."

Just then, the Stargate burst into life. The MALP was sent through, and the team waited for the video feed to come back. A minute later, Hammond's voice came over the speaker.

"It looks all clear, SG-1. You have a go."

With a shared smile and a brief clasp of hands, Daniel and Sam followed Jack and Teal'c into the event horizon, friends, lovers and, now, teammates once again.

THE END 


End file.
